Ticker

Lilypie First Birthday tickers

Sunday, December 30, 2007

NYC

Holy cow... spent the day in NYC. I'm so fucking exhausted, I can't even type. I've seen a week's worth of sightseeing in half a day. Jesus H. Christ.

I wish I didn't have to fly home tomorrow EARLY morning. Fuck. I'm gonna die.

More on another day.... zzzzzzzzzzzzz............

Saturday, December 29, 2007

I love Victoria's Secret

Current Victoria's Secret sale - Buy one bra, get the second at 50%. Also, 10 pairs of select style underwear for $25. Sweeeeeeeeet. I bought two bras for myself and ten pairs of underwear for Jules (who has never owned any VS stuff). I love the IPEX bras... no under wires and great support.

I also bought a 5 year diary. It's really cool. I'm going to use it with Jules to note significant (and maybe some less significant) events in our relationship so we can flip through it and look at it and remember on occasion. I think she'll like it a lot. :)

Shopping is exhausting... I think I'm definitely done for this trip. Tomorrow Jen and are are probably going up to NYC for a few hours because I've never been. I'm sure that'll be equally exhausting but hopefully a lot of fun as well!

Friday, December 28, 2007

More shopping in Philly

Find of the day - Sketchers shoes and Bath & BodyWorks stuff. My mom's birthday is in January and she's rabid for the B&BW stuff... I, on the other hand, LOVE Sketchers. I also picked up a really nice pair of blue jeans at Old Navy and a graphic tee shirt.

I can't imagine going back to work in a few days. Ugh. I've been really good with not looking at work stuff this week. It can only hold off for another couple of days and then begins Stress Fest 2008. :(

Today I'm grateful for:

* Dexter season two on TeVo
* The Dexter actress who thankfully must have taken acting lessons between seasons
* Vacation
* A girlfriend who misses me and whom I miss
* My two swell doctor friends

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Another day of vacation...

I was pretty lazy today for the most part. Jen and I went to bed pretty late last night (2 am, late by our standards) so I ended up sleeping until 8:30 am when Wendi called so I could let her in to the building (I had her set of keys for my shopping adventure yesterday) and then went back to sleep until 12:30 pm when I finally decided I should get up and shower because I had to do *something* touristy. I ended up finally leaving the apartment at 2:30 pm and went to the Mütter Museum where I learned a lot about Benjamin Franklin and how smart he was when it came to medicine and, well, everything. I also saw a lot of interesting and disgusting things that were gathered and preserved over many, many years. I left there at 5 pm, exhausted as if my brain just couldn't take any more weirdness, and walked back to the apartment.

Lovely dinner tonight at FARMiCiA where we stuffed ourselves with good food. Jen and Wendi were finally able to open their Christmas presents from me tonight - thankfully the two cute mugs I brought did not break in my mishandled bag. I also gave them some tea, the movie Hairspray and Margaret Cho's Assassin.

Oh yeah, I received flowers from Jules today. I am not too happy about that though - it's fucking expensive to send flowers and she has such a small budget to work with. She knows how I feel about her going over budget for things that aren't necessary... sigh... I didn't give her shit though (I'm attempting to be less critical), I just thanked her.

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Return to flyer

Well, I went shopping at the ghetto mall today for some clothes and toiletries. Before I left, I checked with US Airways to see if those morons knew where my bag was. It was still lost at that point. When I stumbled back to Jen and Wendi's place, exhausted and spent (literally as well as figuratively), I checked the US Airways website and saw that they both found and delivered my bag while I was shopping. I KNEW that would happen. Oh well... now I have some clothes that are so-so (by the time I got to the mall, everything was picked over because of the Boxing Day sales... I was barely able to get ANYTHING close to my size) and the stuff I came with.

I swear, I am never going shopping again on Boxing Day. Fucking craziness!!! I couldn't even step foot into Bath & Bodyworks because it was so packed with people. Old Navy was a disaster. The food court was insane. Just an overall nightmare. I have blisters on my feet from walking around so much... ouch.

Oh well, at least I have my stuff back.

Wendi is working through a 27 hr shift today so Jen and I ordered pizza and played Boggle for the better part of the evening. I think I'm going to have to look for my Boggle game when I get home. The damn thing is addictive.

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Christmas how I like it

When I awoke this morning, I was hoping that Santa had left my missing bag under Jen and Wendi's Christmas tree, but no such luck. There were, however, many great presents to unwrap. One of which was a gift Wendi gave Jen - Boggle Deluxe. Jen and her family are huge Boggle fans and so she's very, very good at playing it. We ended up playing it for several hours today. Let me tell you, I have now learned several words I never knew existed. Lots of fun and in Wendi's case, lots of giggling, although that may have been brought on by her cough syrup.

Wendi made us a fantastic breakfast of scrambled eggs and banana and pecan pancakes with strawberries and maple syrup. Mmmm... we Boggled through lunch and ended up noshing on junk food before settling down to watch Love Actually. Next up will be dinner that we picked up from the only place we could find open this afternoon.

Still no fucking bag from US Airways. This morning they told me that it arrived in Philly at midnight and that United Airlines had it and they were requesting a transfer so they could deliver it to me this evening, but I called back this evening and now they have no idea where it is. Fuck! I'm calling United Airlines next. If I don't get it by tomorrow morning, I have to go shopping for clothes because wearing my travel clothes for three days straight is not something I want to do.

Today I'm grateful for:

* My family taking care of my girlfriend while I'm away
* Jen and Wendi for sharing a third Christmas with me :)
* Wine
* Kitties who sort of, kinda remember this strange person who visits sometimes
* New places to visit
* Friends who call me on my cell phone to leave me a 'Merry Christmas' message

Monday, December 24, 2007

Baggage Claim

Traveled all day. Tired as hell. US Airways lost my bag. Fantastic start to my Philadelphia adventure! Ah well, at least tomorrow's Christmas. :)

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Saturday (with no work... how strange)

I wonder if it's weird that my girlfriend will be spending Christmas with my family while I spend Christmas away with friends...

My family adores Jules. I joke that they adore her more than they like me. They love that she's spending Christmas with them... in fact, it was my family who insisted. I hope it all goes okay on Christmas eve and day...

We're currently watching What A Girl Wants, which was a cheap impulse buy at Zellers this evening. It's semi-British which appeals to Jules and it has Amanda Bynes and Colin Firth in it which appeals to me. So far it's not bad. : )

I'm also drinking Guinness, a guilty pleasure that I picked up last year in Minneapolis. I spent a week trying it out in the Irish pub at the hotel I was staying at during my first business trip to GMI HQ with a colleague from a plant in Ontario. We would finish our grueling day at work and then go back to the hotel and have dinner and several pints of Guinness in the pub. The plant in Ontario was shut down at the end of November of this year - a move that shocked our plant in Edmonton, but business is business. Now, when I have Guinness, I think of Kathleen and feel a little sad about everyone who worked at that plant who are now either unemployed or working at new jobs. :\

Friday, December 21, 2007

Done!

Me = Officially on vacation now. Wooooooooooohooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!! I got off of work at 8:30 pm and I've promised myself the evening to do nothing. Tomorrow begins the chaos of getting ready for Philly bright and early on Monday morning (4 am, ick). Tomorrow Jules and I are also viewing apartments. Yeah... somehow I got myself into that...

Candy Cane Lane = A long stretch of a residential street where almost every house is decorated for Christmas really well. Normally it's really worth going (also a great place to give to the Food Bank), but this year absolutely sucked.

Bright Lights - Several businesses sponsor light displays in one of the largest city parks. Absolutely amazing and definitely worth the $10/car. It takes a long time to drive the loop though... the park is huge and the cars go slow because people are taking a ton of pictures.

Today I'm grateful for:

* The end of a very hard year
* Vacation!!!!
* A wonderful girlfriend
* Great friends who send me Christmas cards

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Pics from the weekend


Camera phone pic of Jules and I on Candy Cane Lane on Sunday night. I was bundled up because it was freezing outside...


The snowman that Chantel, my sister, made. It's short and funny-looking. She said the snow was too hard to do a bigger one.


Me on Candy Cane Lane freezing my arse off...

And this is why I love Canadians in sport...



Canadians always know how to have a good time when they play sports. This is from a week ago but I love this picture so much... it says a lot about Canadian athletes. The one pouring is Britt Janyk who won the downhill ski race that day. Kelly Vanderbeek is the one drinking and she placed sixth. Canadians will celebrate if they come in 65th... it doesn't matter. It's like they're just happy to be there (paying their own way because our funding sucks).

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Back on the horse... so to speak

I went to another hockey game last night. This time the Dallas Stars were in town. We ended up losing in a shoot out. Being there again was not that bad, despite being able to see where I had been sitting the last time from the seats we were in this time. At one point the puck flipped into the crowd and my blood ran cold, but it hit the ground instead of a person, so that was good.

Work is hellacious right now. I can't freakin' wait to be on vacation, although who am I kidding... I'm still going to have to monitor some stuff while I'm gone.

I totally did not get around to sending Christmas cards to *anyone* this year. Not even people I see every day where I could just HAND them one. I've been so damn busy it's not even funny.

Tonight I finished work at 8 pm and decided to go to Wal-mart to pick up something for Jules. Holy Christ was that a mistake. I guess there's a reason it's open 24 hours because you HAVE to go in the middle of the night just to be able to walk down an aisle way without being crushed by the crowd.

Tomorrow the office people are doing a gift exchange thing (that I totally did not want to participate in)... we draw numbers and the first person opens a present... second person can pick that one or open one... etc., etc... with the last person getting to pick from everything. Anyway, I decided to be practical and hopefully a little original... I bought a car seat warmer/massager. It's at least a gift I wouldn't mind ending up with. Currently I'm using my sister's seat warmer (she let me use it the night I broke my nose and I just haven't taken it out of my car yet...heh).

Well, it's time for bed. I'm beyond exhausted...

Today I'm grateful for:

* My upcoming vacation
* Tomorrow being pay day
* My girlfriend
* My American twin for updating her blog so I know she's alive

Monday, December 17, 2007

Surgery

Doctor determined I need surgery to repair the inside of my nose. I'm now booked for January 23rd. It's a day surgery procedure that'll take about four days to recover from.

One thing I know for sure... having a camera shoved up my nose is NOT fun.

Four more days of work/hell until vacation. Yay....

Wendi's birthday today... wow... I've known Wendi for seven years now... where does time go??

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Hm... well, Shannon over on Other-Motherhood tagged everyone for this, so here goes:

Write the first sentence from the first post of every month, and the last sentence from the last post of every month.

(I am taking the last line before my gratitude part of the posts)

January - N/A

February - People use that phrase, "More [blank] than I know what to do with." quite often. Tim Hortons coffee.

March - I realized, as I pulled away from the drive-thru window at Tim Horton's this morning, that people do not say 'thank you' or exchange praise nearly enough as they should. Boy, have I been punished.

April - This weekend sucked for the most part. In all honesty though, I would gladly re-live last August when I had strep throat for almost the entire month if it meant fixing what's happening now. (Gee... can you tell I was starting to go through relationship hell?)

May - I'm feeling a little better today, although I think I've blown my nose about 200 times. I'm just so upset...

June - Well, I had an hour-long phone conversation with her this morning. I have a tee time to face at 7:30 in the morning.

July - Golfing went pretty well this morning, considering I haven't golfed since September 29 th of last year. I love being happy and productive. (Starting to perk up here now...)

August - My uncle passed away this morning. I don't get it...

September - My god, I'm getting terrible with this updating thing... damn vortex of first stage-ness! So yeah, no more relaxed mood...

October - Well, for four days this week, I worked from 7 am to 7 or 8 pm. Not sure why that is.

November - Well, I think winter has begun. I wish I could win the lottery...

December - I received a hockey jersey from the Edmonton Oilers today.

Craziness

Work is so crazy that I can't seem to focus on anything else. My laundry is piled up, the movies I rented a while ago are still sitting on my desk, I haven't given my trip much of a thought yet (aside from saying 'thank god I have a trip coming up'), I haven't sent any Christmas cards, I haven't really done much Christmas shopping... I'm just a disorganized mess.

I'm seeing a ENT specialist on Monday for my nose. I need my left nostril looked at because it seems to be partially blocked and I need to be cleared for flying. I still get several headaches and periods of dizziness which sucks, especially when I'm at work.

Today we had the warmest weather we've had in weeks (+2C) but then in the afternoon came a huge blizzard with heavy wet snow and it was almost impossible to drive home after work. It wasn't so much driving as it was sliding home...

Today I'm grateful for:

* My family
* My girlfriend
* Not getting into an accident
* My upcoming trip
* Finally finishing one of my new books after months of sitting on the shelf

Friday, December 7, 2007

Brrrrrrrr...... it's frrrreeeeeeeeezing here...

It is so damn cold here lately. This whole past week has been very frigid... like, -20C and below with snow almost every day. Tonight, on the way home from work, I saw three big accidents during my 15 minute commute. How sad is that... the roads are very slippery despite some of them looking clear. At one point, I hit my brakes and I just kept on going because the road was like glass. It's amazing, the things we do to get around without having to brave the elements. Huge, heavy, fuel filled vehicles on ice... yeah, totally stupid.

I've resumed working long hours again now that my nose isn't bothering me as much. This month has been insane already and it's only the 7th. I'm really looking forward to my vacation at the end of the month...

On Monday I brought my cat, Molly, over to my place for a visit. She was freaked out for the first day but then did pretty well after that. It was nice having her here but I definitely value my sleep now that she's gone again (my grandparents came and picked her up yesterday). She's so adorable in the middle of the night, walking all over me, meowing and rubbing herself against everything. Annoying but adorable.

I finished watching season one of Dexter on DVD and I'm craving more. Jules bought me one of the books to tide me over and it's great because the show is obviously written closely to the style of the books.

I've also finally started watching the third and final season of Veronica Mars. I bought it when it came out on DVD but I was putting it off because I don't want to finish it and have nothing to look forward to. So far it's pretty good but it's all bittersweet of course... sigh.

Well, off to take a warm bath because I'm freezing my ass off...

Today I'm grateful for:

- A warm house to live in (except it's cold right now for some reason...)
- My girlfriend and all of the wonderful things she does for me
- Not getting into an accident on the super slippery roads
- My upcoming vacation
- Good books to read

Monday, December 3, 2007

Jersey

I received a hockey jersey from the Edmonton Oilers today. It's signed by Ales Hemsky, my current favourite player. :)

Ugh... work sucks. I can't wait for Christmas break!

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Blah

Ugh... I feel gross. I think I've gained weight again. :(

I need to stop working so much and actually go grocery shopping for healthy food.

I wish I could win the lottery...

Monday, November 26, 2007

Picture Of The Day

I've had about four people e-mail me this picture today. I totally remember this exact moment. The first aid woman was asking me where I was and what the score was, so I finally opened my eyes to be sure of where I was, lol...



I still can't sleep without being propped up in a sitting position, which sucks because unless I'm drugged into oblivion, it's uncomfortable to sleep at that angle. The pressure of being any flatter is worse though, so I guess I'm stuck that way for a while.

I went to the company Christmas party on Saturday, which seemed like a good idea at the time, but really wasn't. There was a stand up comedian after dinner and he was really funny... well, smiling and laughing hurt like hell, even with three drinks and two painkillers. I really suffered after a couple of hours. Ryan and I went back to his place to watch a movie afterwards and I drugged up some more but it didn't do much good. I was a little more swollen the next day but it has subsided since. I actually look really good now... only a little yellow bruising left and a couple of cuts on my nose (and a slight crookedness) but other than that, you wouldn't know I have a broken nose.

I have had a runny nose all day, which is really hard to manage when it's impossible to blow my nose. I've also had a bit of a chest cough, which worries me because I really don't want to be sick!! I went to work from 7 am - 11:30 am and then I just couldn't handle it any longer. My face felt like it was going to explode. I went home and rested and then napped for the afternoon and early evening. Now it's bedtime and I'm not really tired. Great...

Friday, November 23, 2007

Gratitude

My work sent me flowers today. I totally didn't expect that... how nice of them!

Hm... I feel like I've had to tell this story a hundred times this week already, but here it is one more time:

Jules and I went to the Edmonton Oilers / Vancouver Canucks hockey game on Tuesday night. It was a great game and the Oilers were winning... I was teaching Jules various things about what we saw (she's British and had no idea what was going on and why). If you can picture the shape of a hockey rink, we were sitting right in front of the face off circles in front of the net, right where the netting for the crowd ends (it's only around the curved part of the glass) and the glass gets lower. We were sitting in really expensive seats (courtesy of Jules' co-workers - I can't afford $130 per ticket!) and I remember thinking when we sat down that it was kind of scary being that close with no netting to stop the puck from going into the crowd, but then I thought 'What are the odds of that happening?'... um... apparently pretty damn good on that night.

The second period had barely begun and the play was leaving the far end of the ice and was coming up our side into the Canucks defensive zone. I was watching the play intently as I always do (I'm definitely not a person who takes their eyes off the puck when it's in play) when suddenly everything went black and it felt like someone had kicked me in the face or hit me with a freakin' frying pan. My first thought was, "What the fuck?! Who hit me?" I honestly thought someone in the stands accidentally hit me with something... which is stupid because really, nobody was sitting on my right side and nobody was up from their seat or anything.... and then I realized, "Oh my god, I must have gotten hit by the puck!" My hands went over my face then and I cupped my nose. By that time, blood was pouring out of my nose and through my fingers all over my jeans, polo shirt, seat, floor, everything. Jules told me later that she didn't even notice that I was hit until the people in front of us turned around because the puck apparently hit some guy in the back of the head after it hit my face. I swear, within ten seconds, the first aid team was there tending to me. They gave me some sort of trauma towel and I actually got up and walked down the aisle and up the stairs to the first aid station. I remember feeling like I wasn't even in my body because I was on auto pilot. Everyone was, of course, staring at me because I looked like a massacre victim. I heard later that I was on TV (oh yay... another TV moment for me this year... definitely not one I wanted) as well as the big screens at centre ice. Jesus... I'm sure that looked pretty. Anyway, at the first aid station, they basically just determined that I hadn't blacked out and my neck hadn't snapped back. Then they gave me the option of going to the ER by ambulance or by private vehicle and of course I chose private vehicle because there's no fucking way I was going to pay for the ambulance AND then have to go back there somehow to get my vehicle. So yeah, Jules and I walked VERY slowly to the car. It took about an eternity and a half to get to the car and then Jules drove me to the ER in Sherwood Park because it was closest to where I live. She hasn't driven in a long time so she drove me absolutely insane with her timid driving. I think she was scared that she was going to drive over bumps and potholes but I was yelling at her to drive the speed limit and not to care about the bumps. It's Edmonton... every fucking street has pot holes and bumps!

So, we got to the ER and go figure, the hockey game was on in the waiting room. They took one look at me, asked me what happened and I just pointed to the TV. Well, holy cow, I got fantastic service once they knew I was hit by a puck! That apparently classifies as a 'cool' injury and several doctors and nurses stopped by to take a look. I got X-Rays and was icing my face while waiting for the shot of painkillers to kick in. The doctors told me my nose was fractured so much, they couldn't even count how many fractures I actually have... but could clearly see it was at least 5 or 6. Jesus. At this point, my sister had arrived to take pictures for Facebook (clearly very important to her, lol). The doctor sort of adjusted my nose into the straightest he could get it and said I was lucky that it was pretty aligned on its own, but to tell for sure, I'll have to wait about ten days when the swelling goes down a lot more. When he started adjusting it, it started pouring blood again, so he packed the one side with these nasal tampons (they were actually called that on the package) but I kept bleeding through them, so they taped up a whole bunch of gauze in front of it and told me I had to go to the U of A hospital ER where they had an ENT doctor who could pack it better and/or do something else to get it to stop bleeding.

Soooooo... 25 minute trip to that ER.... same thing, triage nurses were in awe of my story, I got in within 10 minutes despite the waiting room being so packed, it was standing room only (at this point it was midnight) and got a blood test to see if I had lost too much blood. By this time, the painkillers I had initially received were wearing off, so I was given two Tylenol 3's and some general anesthetic inside of my nose. I then sat for an hour before the doctor came back and re-packed my nose. Holy mother fucking hell... that is the most painful thing I have ever experienced. Picture shoving an emery board slightly longer and a little wider than your middle finger up each nostril. Then picture shoving a second one up there on one side. It felt like it was piercing my fucking brain, or at least my sinuses. Jesus fucking Christ... I was yelling and managed not to swear, although after the first one went in and I had nearly squirmed off of the chair (in the ENT rooms, they have chairs similar to dentist chairs), the doctor told me that I had every right to swear at her and curse as loud as I wanted and encouraged it if it made me feel better. I was sobbing, it hurt so fucking bad, which only caused my nose to move and the packing to feel like it was piercing even further upwards. It burned sooooooooo bad. I had slumped over against her at one point because she asked me in a panicked voice if I was alright. Then she apologized several more times and told me that of all the terrible things she has to do as a doctor, packing noses makes her feel the worst because she knows just how much pain she has to inflict. Like that made me feel better, but whatever.... I sat there unable to stop crying for a few minutes. The super cute and nice nurse came back and tried to make me feel better and it was at that time that she asked how I had gotten to the hospital. I told her that my girlfriend and sister were waiting for me in the waiting room. The triage nurse, for whatever reason, wouldn't let them come in with me initially. Well, she thought that was absolutely horrible, so she took their names and went out there to get them. Chantel, my sister, took more pictures and then we waited another hour to see if my nose would stop bleeding. It soaked through but was only oozing, so they decided to release me with painkillers and antibiotics and told me that if it didn't stop bleeding by Wednesday night (at that point it was around 4:30 am on Wednesday) to come back to get it re-packed.

We stopped off at the drug store to get the prescription filled and to pick up some Ensure meal replacement drinks that I could take with my meds (at that point I could barely open my mouth to even drink... I kind of just poured it in as best I could). At home, Jules helped me take off my blood-soaked clothes and wiped as much blood as she could off of me and then I went to sleep propped up on five pillows in a sitting position. She told me I snored all night because I had to breathe through my mouth but that it was okay because she knew I was at least sleeping.

I ended up having to go back to the ER on Wednesday night because my nose ended up bleeding slowly all day and by the evening, I had blood in the back of my throat. Again, they took me in within minutes and I had three doctors look at me but they decided not to re-pack it because it was a slow bleed and eventually the blood stopped going down the back of my throat. I was kind of glad because I didn't want to go through the packing agony all over again. I did have the constant urge to sneeze though, so he gave me a prescription for more painkillers and for antihistamine to curb the sneezy, watery eye, runny nose feeling.

By Thursday afternoon I had finally stopped bleeding, but the packing in my right nostril had completely pushed itself out while I was sleeping due to increased swelling. I was happy to be able to breathe out of one side but I looked grotesque (or rather even more than I already was). I had been in contact with work through e-mail on Wednesday and Thursday and knew I was in no shape to go into work so they had no choice but to call my boss in who is on maternity leave. She didn't know when she'd be able to get in (she lives an hour away and had to make arrangements for the baby) so I decided to go in for 20 minutes to check on things and put out any immediate fires. Thank god I did because honestly, they had so many things fucked up, it's obvious how valuable I am to them. I literally had a line up in the conference room where I logged onto the computer and they all brought their problems and issues and questions to me one by one and I dealt with them. After twenty minutes I was so dizzy and exhausted from the effort that I passed out for a four hour nap when I got home. Apparently my boss got there a few hours later and took over from there.

Today she called me to ask me a few things because she's been away from the job for so long that she was afraid she'd mess up some stuff so I talked her through a few things. She was so nice to me on the phone, it took me off guard. I don't know why, but I was expecting it to be a pain in the ass for her to cover for me. I'm just amazed at how my co-workers and family are treating me. I'm not sure why it amazes me, but it does. I think they're actually surprised that I'm intending on going to work on Monday.

Last night I was able to get the packing taken out of my nose and didn't get a nose bleed but the pain of not having the stability of the packing in my nose is very painful. I've had a headache all day and am constantly dizzy. I'm told this will pass in a day or two and that getting the packing removed usually causes the injury to hurt almost as much as it did initially. I at least look better - no black eyes, only bruises under my eyes like a football player and the swelling in my nose has evened out a little more. I've decided that I look okay enough to go to the company Christmas party tomorrow night.

As for my gratitude list... I think I'll just reiterate what my family, friends and co-workers have been saying for the past couple of days:

I'm grateful that:

* I didn't get hit in the mouth
* I didn't get hit in the eye
* I didn't get hit in the temple
* I didn't get a concussion
* I didn't get whiplash
* My nose isn't too crooked, despite having multiple fractures
* I didn't have to get my nose re-packed
* I have painkillers
* I have a wonderful girlfriend/nursemaid
* I have wonderful friends, co-workers and family who really do like me, as it turns out
* I'm needed at work
* My boss came in to cover for me with no problem
* I can breathe out of one nostril and have regained some sense of smell (could smell the flowers I received a little bit)
* I have the puck that hit me

Trophy


This is what I totally didn't see coming at me...
I kind of look like this now except I have more bruising and swelling under my eyes and around my nose.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Owwwwwwwwwwwwww....

Well, I enjoyed the game until a few minutes into the second period. Then I got the puck in the face...

Yep, I have, in the words of the doctors, "More fractures than I can count" on my nose. Long story that I will put on the blog, but for now I can barely sit here to type...

Monday, November 19, 2007

Monday

Well, I found a dress for the Christmas party on Saturday. It's black with some sort of red and green and white pattern... I don't know how to describe it. Anyway, it was on sale for $25! Wow... I didn't even know it was on sale until I went to pay for it. :)

I dislocated my thumb this morning but got it back in place within a few minutes so now it just hurts and feels a little stiff. Unrelated, I went to physical therapy again this afternoon and now have my shoulder taped up with this special kind of tape that gently pulls my shoulder back a little in an effort to work the lower muscles attached to my shoulder blade. Apparently this is supposed to help with neck pain and headaches. All I know is that it hurts right now but probably because I was being moved every which way.

I haven't seen Jen online lately... wondering if she's any closer to feeling better. Hm... I miss her...

The stuff I purchased from Victoria Secret came in the mail today. It came pretty fast considering I ordered it only a week ago (I think... I can't remember). The bras are soooo comfortable!

I had the worst sleep last night... I dreamt that my grandmother was dying of cancer. She was literally on her death bed. It was awful. I was so upset when I woke up. I'm hoping to have a more peaceful sleep tonight.

Tomorrow night I'm going to the Oilers game with Jules and Ryan. The Oilers are playing the Vancouver Canucks so it'll be a good game (even though we'll get our asses kicked hard). Jules got the tickets from her work - a co-worker wasn't going to go, I guess. It's always so much more interesting watching a hockey game live than on TV but tickets are so expensive which is why I/we only go when she can get tickets from work. She barely knows how the game is played (she calls it "the hockey match where our chaps push a puck around on ice and beat on other chaps from another city") heh... it's fun to teach her.

Speaking of teaching, Jules taught me how to play chess yesterday. I nearly beat her but in the end, she prevailed. I tried playing it online last night before bed but it's more fun playing in person.

Today I'm grateful for:

* Finding the first Christmas gift of the season
* My bras from Victoria Secret fitting perfectly
* Having a warm home to live in at this time of year
* Having a dependable car to drive at this time of year
* A trip to look forward to

Sunday, November 18, 2007

"Sure, fine, whatever...." - Scully, The X-Files

Well, the humidifier seems to be working well. I had a great sleep and woke up without feeling like I had been sleeping in the desert. It was also nice to stretch out last night and have the whole bed to sleep in. I mentioned that to Jules this morning and she didn't seem too thrilled... lol. Whatever... it's nice to sleep alone sometimes.

She's also not thrilled with the fact that it's 12:30 pm and I'm still not over there at her place yet. We're going shopping for something for me to wear at my company Christmas party next Saturday. I've been having a relaxing morning and have to feel guilty about it because I should be over there. Well... seeing how I NEVER get this time these days... I was enjoying it. She has way more alone time than I do. At least she recognizes that... but still, she does the girl thing, "No, it's fine... you don't get much alone time... you said we were going shopping today, but whatever, it's fine. You work a lot and I don't get to see you much during the week, but that's okay... I know that." Um.... yeah, I really don't think it's fine with her, but at least she's trying to understand.

So yeah, I'm finally showered and dressed and have folded my last load of laundry, so I guess I'm off to shop (I so don't want to spend more money...god...) for clothes I don't want to buy. :)

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Christmas...

Holy hell... I went into Canadian Tire after work today to pick up a humidifier for my room and was struck with the realization that it is THE CHRISTMAS SEASON.

I was impossible to maneuver a cart anywhere in the store. Not even in the lesser visited aisles in the back where they sell stuff nobody ever needs. Believe me, I tried. I made the huge mistake of venturing into the Christmas tree section so I could pick up the tree that I had a coupon for (a little 3' Christmas tree w/ lights for $9.99). It took forever to de-tangle myself from the mass of shopping carts once in that area. Then of course there was a 20 minute wait to pay at the front. Man, that humidifier better be worth it.

I need a humidifier because Alberta is so damn dry. I wake up in the morning and the back of my throat is dry and my sinuses are sore. It stays with me all day... although now that I think about it, it actually gets worse at work with all of the flour in the air. Anyway, I spend all day clearing my throat (of nothing) and it sucks. Normally around this time of year I will plug in just an old Vicks steamer and use that but that puts out a little too much humidity in a night and reminds me of being sick because one can never get rid of the vapor medicine smell.

Yesterday, while Jules was here, I for whatever reason decided to pull out the two picture frames I had thrown under the bed back at the end of May when I broke up with my ex-girlfriend. One frame fit a 5x7 picture and the other fit four 4x6 pictures. Well, I finally decided to remove the pictures of my ex and myself and put in some new ones. It was kind of hard but also therapeutic at the same time.

Here are some pics that Ryan took of us from the other day when we were waiting to go out to dinner:





Yeah, I know... it's sickening.

Well, time to read the directions for my humidifier... another totally exciting Saturday night!!

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend
* Indian food
* November half over
* My trip to Philly next month
* Sleeping in tomorrow morning...
This is awesome...

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

No pain, no gain...

I woke up this morning with my left shoulder/arm/hand feeling really funny. It normally gives me grief but today was bizarre. I've had shooting pain down to the last two fingers on my hand all day. It hurts and it's distracting. I finally broke down and called a physical therapy place to see if they can determine what the hell is wrong with me. I'm thinking it's a pinched nerve... but I'm pretty messed up in my shoulder/neck area from years of production line work so who knows. I also have nerve damage in my left index finger that is excruciating if touched near the base of my finger nail (typing only mildly bothers it, thank god). I have no idea what I did to get that... I just remember it developing sometime when I was 13 years old. I've been to a neurologist and he couldn't figure it out.

Anyway, my appointment is at 6:20 pm and costs $93. It's not covered by health care but I think my private insurance through work will cover it. I have $300 a year towards stuff like that.

After my appointment I'm meeting the Quality and Production managers from work for drinks at a restaurant. It's been that kind of day/week for us at work...

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Victoria Secret

Seeing how there is only ONE Victoria Secret in all of Canada, I have to purchase what I want online. My sister showed me the IPEX wireless bra she bought a while ago and it is amazing. I decided to try a couple ($42 ea) and also picked up some of their 5/$25 priced underwear and next thing I know, it's over $100.... Yeah, yeah, I can add... but it just seems so.... much. Two bras and five pairs of underwear.... $109 + tax & shipping = $136.85. Wow...

It is good stuff though... and I'm sure I'd be paying the same amount here anyway... but seeing how I just put over $700 on my credit card last night for airfare... heh. My Visa card is probably melted in my wallet. I guess this is where my insane overtime helps a little, although I do need new brakes on my car before the end of the year... It's always something getting in the way of the fun stuff.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

What a week...

This week was hell!

Sooooo glad work is over with today and I get to sleep in tomorrow. It's strange not having Jules here though. :(

My tonsils are sore again. Sigh. They act up every couple of months. When the hell the doctor is ever going to let me get them out, I don't know...

I booked airfare to Philly today... very excited! I sooooooooo need a vacation.

Blah... tonsils driving me to distraction. More tomorrow...

Friday, November 9, 2007

Friday with flowers

My girl sent me lilies today at work. : )

It's our three month anniversary on Monday...

She's in Banff right now and I'm sitting at home watching Grey's Anatomy... sigh.

At least I was able to leave work at 4 pm today. That's something... although I'm back there tomorrow morning.

Is it weird that I wear my ex-girlfriend's perfume? I never bought it when we were together because that would be strange, both of us wearing it... but last week, I was looking at perfume with Jules and I saw it. I told Jules who wears it... then bought it. Jules is okay with it, she just teases me about it. I must admit that it does occasionally bring me back to a moment in time and I feel a small twinge of something, but I don't think it's sadness or heartache. Maybe just of what was... I don't know. Anyway, it's probably weird... but I love the scent. Jules enjoys it too which is probably why she's okay with it. ; )

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

No Go

Banff will be a no go for me this weekend. Everything and anything that could possibly happen at work is happening... the past two days have been unbelievable. I worked until 8 pm last night and 7:30 pm tonight. I'm still not caught up from last week so that means I'll definitely be working on Saturday. I've managed to avoid scheduling Sunday production so I'll have one day off at least.

I broke the news to Jules this morning and she understands. It's helpful to have a girlfriend who has been in a similar situation before. She used to manage a Chapters/Indigo/Coles/whatever they call them now book store and had to work all of the holidays, work late, etc. I'm sure she's quite disappointed but she's insisting I stay and work... thank goodness because if I went away this weekend there's no way in hell I'd ever catch up. The busy season is in full swing and I'm already having to pull minor miracles on a daily basis to ensure Eastern Canada has enough inventory, whether it means changing the schedule mid-shift or next day... or making the warehouse manager coordinate a stock transfer between here and Ontario on a whim (which sucks and I loathe to do it)... blah... this week we've also been having issues with packaging and ingredients... there's no way in hell I can leave.

I wish my manager would return to work so I could ease up on hours/days...

In other news... My car needs new brakes. My brakes are squealing. Yay... just what I need when the snow season has started. I have no idea how much brakes cost but I'm guessing it's quite a bit, depending on whether I just need brake pads or if I need other stuff too. My car is 14 years old so chances are, it's not going to be cheap.

It's my best friend/co-worker's birthday tomorrow so I have to get her gift bag sorted out. She loves Family Guy, especially Stewie so I bought her some little things that I know she'll like. I also got her some Post-It notes that I found in a cool store that sells paper and writing stuff. They're really... sophisticated. I love their Post-it 'To Do' list pads... she's been coveting mine so I bought her some of her own, plus some other ones. It's funny... people get her the usual stuff for her birthday and Christmas and she doesn't like it. I get her stuff like a clear plastic clipboard and an easy compressing stapler from Staples and she *still* mentions how much she loves them... and that was a year ago. I also get her stuff like hand sanitizer and jelly beans and they're a big hit. It's all about knowing what the person likes. ;)

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend
* The time change
* Having my passport
* Grey's Anatomy
* My chiropractor
* Kate Walsh on the cover of Marie Claire

Sunday, November 4, 2007

Winter

Well, I think winter has begun. Thank goodness the snow held off until after Halloween so the kids could have a decent night without snowsuits and windburned faces... but now it's here. It snowed all last night so there's about three inches on the ground. The ground is still warm enough to melt some of it, but it's not melting all of it. Blah. It's so windy and grey outside... definitely not an ideal day to go shopping, but seeing how today is my only full day off of the week, I must endure.

Jules and I are going to Old Navy, Chapters, a second hand clothing store (I've never been - she loves 'em), Canadian Tire (going to pick up a second seat warmer for the car... they have them on sale for $16.99!), the grocery store that has 2-for-1 sales on salmon, hand lotion, toilet paper, febreeze, tide, etc....

I'm really feeling the burn out at work this week... I got so mad at one of my co-workers that I hung up on him when he refused to listen to reason. Yeah, not proud of my immaturity there, but I just couldn't take it anymore. I'm really hoping that I can tear myself away from work next weekend (even though I've now had to schedule production for 7 days a week) in order to accompany Jules and Ryan to Banff to see Jules' good friend and former co-worker in Banff. A trip to the mountains would do me some good, I think.

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend
* My seat warmer
* Leftover sour Halloween candies
* My kitties
* At least one day off a week

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Insanity

Oh my god, sometimes I hate being a woman. Fucking menstrual cramps suck!!! I've taken drugs, tried the heating pad, tried stretching, tried curling up in a ball on the bed, tried a bath.... nothing helps. The codeine in the Tylenol 3 I have helps take a bit of the edge off but then I feel nauseated. Bleh. I hate this day or two of the month!!!!!

So yeah, that's what I have going on today. That and a crisis at work where we're running a new product and the box company that makes our shipper cartons fucked up on the box size, so our boxes are slightly too long for the product. Our product is frozen so the extra room may cause the product to break in transport.... so yeah, I was at work for 11 hours yesterday with the Quality manager trying to figure out a way to still run the product with the boxes we have until the box company can produce new ones. We did find a fix for it but it requires additional cardboard inserts and two extra people on the line to add them to the cases. God... what an ordeal. So with having to deal with all of this, I'm really behind on my day-to-day stuff. I ended up going home at 3 pm today because my cramps were nearing the unbearable level - so the work remains undone until tomorrow... and tomorrow the pile will be even higher. Fun, fun, fun. The management team is gone to a conference tomorrow though, so I'm stuck working 11 hours again anyway so someone is there to manage any issues that arise. So weird that I'm the person that is given that responsibility these days... I'm sometimes amazed at the strange position I find myself in sometimes. A year ago I would have never seen myself where I'm at right now - I don't think anyone would. What I'm doing now is not really even in my job description... but then again, I am doing most of my manager's job while she's on maternity leave, so that's probably why. Once she's back, my responsibility and work load will definitely be reduced. I'm actually looking forward to that. :)

I've started season three of Grey's Anatomy. Some of the characters are pissing me off now... I think I'll definitely be going through this season slower than the previous two. I think I may be getting a touch annoyed with it.

I really need a holiday away from home. I would like to visit Jen and Wendi in Philadelphia sometime in the near future. I would also like to visit San Francisco again and go to Victoria for a visit to The Butchart Gardens. I went there when I was 13 years old and it was amazing. I showed Jules the pictures online and she thought it was magnificent, so I would like to take her sometime. The company she works for has an office in Victoria, so I think she'd also like to visit some of her colleagues that she talks to on the phone regularly with.

Tonight, some of the cutest little kids I have ever seen came around for candy. Little wee ones dressed like frogs and bunnies and ducks and bears... sooooooooooooooooo adorable. Halloween is so worth it just to see the little itty bitty kids who can barely walk up the steps come by for candy.

I've decided, next year I don't want to give out candy. I want to give out something else... like maybe juice boxes or something. I remember as a kid that I always thought it was cool when I received stuff that was different from the rest. Then again, I was the kid who loved when I got raisins and sunflower seeds and I gave away my chocolates because I didn't like chocolate until I was 18 years old for some reason. It's still not a favourite of mine... it has to have a lot of caramel or nuts or fruit or something in it for me to eat it. I cannot eat dark chocolate at all though... instant bad reaction. Not sure why that is.

Today I'm grateful for:

* Drugs (even if they barely work)
* Friends
* Quick fixes
* Responsibility
* My bed

Sunday, October 28, 2007

I love Grey's Anatomy

I am finally not sick any more! Yay!!!!

I think I'm not sick any more because I've been watching so much Grey's Anatomy. Heh...

And when I'm not watching that or sleeping, I'm at work. Bleh. The busy season sucks. Thank goodness Jules is in the running for Most Understanding Girlfriend Of The Year...

I did manage to get my highlights touched up (I hadn't been since July) and four inches cut off. My waves are curls again... it looks really nice. :)

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend
* One day off on the weekend
* The beautiful weather we had today and the gorgeous walk I went on with Jules
* My laundry almost being finished
* Finally not being sick any more (just in time for my flu shot at work tomorrow)

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Drugged state

No change so far this week... my cold has moved into my chest but that's about it. I leave work, go home and climb into bed to watch a couple of episodes of Criminal Minds before passing out with the help of Nyquil.

Apparently I'm taking a weekend trip to Banff in November with Jules and Ryan to see their friend (and Julie's former co-worker) who now lives there and manages a book store. I remember thinking, the last time I was in Banff, 'I don't know how anyone could live here all year...' because it's so small and geared towards tourists ($$$$), but I suppose some people like it a lot. I'm a city girl, so what do I know...

Oh, yesterday at work, I was asked to go to some formal banquet on Friday evening. Our company is a finalist for some environmental and safety award for the city and therefore five reps for the company must be there, with guest. I'm dragging Timmy, my co-worker/twin brother to it (I had to beg... it wasn't pretty). It's going to suck because I'm sick... blah. Oh, that and the fact that I have to wear a freakin' DRESS! Sigh...

Today I'm grateful for:

* 8 am start at work
* Dayquil / Nyquil
* Um....

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Yep, sick!

Ugh... I'm siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick....

The above should have a whiny tone to it.

Work was horrible yesterday... I worked at the speed of a snail so it was pretty useless. After work I picked up some pictures from Wal-mart, framed 'em, took a nap and then took the pictures over to Julie's place to mark our two month anniversary. Needless to say, the framed pictures went over very well. : )

Julie's friend Ryan was over and we played Scrabble. I love Ryan... he and I get along sooooo well, it's almost scary. Despite my being stoned on Nyquil, I kicked ass and won. I had a craving for Chinese food, which was strange because everything was making me feel nauseated... so we ordered food but it took two hours to get here... so by the time it got here, I was no longer interested in eating, so I ended up eating three bites before going to bed. Lovely...

This morning, Jules and Ryan went grocery shopping for breakfast stuff... Jules made us omelets while we watched 28 Weeks Later which I thought was terrible. It wasn't scary - all it did was piss me off. Now we're watching the Arrested Development episodes with Charlize Theron before we go back to my place to tackle my mountain of laundry. Sigh... I hate being too busy to keep up with laundry.

Today I'm grateful for:

* Dayquil
* Nyquil
* Halls
* Hot tea
* My girlfriend

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Sick? I hope not!

So yesterday, I woke up feeling kind of sluggish and off... like a cold or flu was imminent. Felt cranky and achy all day and ended up going to bed ridiculously early at 7 pm. Now I've woken up at 1:15 am and I feel like absolute garbage. I have a headache, my body aches, I have a wicked sore throat... sigh...

I've gargled with salt water and I'm on my second cup of tea with lemon (apparently I have no honey... probably because I only use it for tea when I'm sick...). I found some cold meds from the last time I was sick - I have no idea when that was actually but I know the meds are still good - so I've taken two of those and found a stash of Halls left from my ex-girlfriend. So far nothing is helping but I'm hoping it'll kick in soon... at least to get me back to sleep. I start work at 7:30 this morning... bleh...

I cracked open the first season of Criminal Minds last night and watched the first episode. I purchased that back in June during DVD distract-o-rama when I needed to keep myself distracted from my break-up at all hours of the day but never actually got to it (which, I suppose is a good thing!). Anyway, I thought it was not bad. The episode ended kind of strange but I suppose they did that so the viewer would tune in the following week to see what happened. I saw the show on television the day before yesterday and noticed that the lead character is no longer on the show. I remember reading about it but I can't remember why. I didn't watch more than maybe five minutes of it but it looks like he must have just left his job (in the show) and now they're all shocked and dealing with it or something. In reality he probably drove drunk or something and is all embarrassed... who knows. It's not even worth looking up.

Next week I'm house sitting for my best friend/co-worker. She's off on a business trip to Sonoma, California. Must be freakin' nice to be staying in wine country and to get to go golfing as a team building exercise! I'm kidding... business trips suck big time and I don't envy her at all. I still have my fingers crossed that I don't have to go to Minneapolis this year. So far I've avoided it and I hope I can still escape the year without a trip. I actually hope I never have to go again... I don't think I have much training left to do. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky. : ) I love traveling for personal reasons but business trips are to busy and stressful!!

Okay, I'm going to try to get back to sleep...

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Worn and weary

The plant manager at work is in Palm Springs right now on vacation... but for some reason he felt the need to send the office staff flowers. We each got a vase filled with two roses and two carnations with some other kind of tiny flowers mixed in. I wonder if it's to make up for the fact that it's hectic at work and he's out golfing...

I'm so bloody tired but I've forgotten how to relax and have downtime. I worked until 6 pm this evening before deciding I needed some sort of evening of relaxation. Now I'm home and I have no idea what the hell I want to do.

Today I'm grateful for:

* Not having a birth certificate issued in the province of Quebec before 1994 (my poor dad has to apply for a new one before he can apply for a passport... how stupid)
* My girlfriend for being unbelievably supportive
* My friends
* The winter jacket we're all getting from work as our 4 year no lost time award. Cool. :)

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

So apparently...

...my girlfriend caught part of my blog post yesterday when I was composing it. She was sort of sitting/laying beside me on the bed while immersed in Bad Girls series 1 and I thought she couldn't see the screen, but I guess she did at one point.

One lengthy e-mail later...

Sigh.

Oh yeah, and work SUCKS right now. It's only the second week of October and we're already shorting customer orders. Fuck. Damn Alberta and our long summer of suffering with lines shut down, etc. I still take it personally even though it's not really my fault. Fuck.

Here are some pics...

Ravine near home




Jules and I


My sister, Samantha and I


My sisters, Chantel and Samantha and I (too bad Sam's blurry...otherwise a great pic!)

Monday, October 8, 2007

This and that

100% on the defensive driving course. Woo! The seven hours of agony was worth it. I only received three phone calls from work through it... I was impressed.

The weekend has been filled with relaxation, Bad Girls series 1 (Jules bought it for me a while back and now she's finally being introduced to it. She's hooked now... heh.), lots of thanksgiving food, a sex toy party, lots of sleep, a nice fall walk, a three am viewing of Venus in the sky... hm... oh yeah, and some work mixed in.

The sex toy party on Saturday was really fun. The guy who did it is the owner of the company and is an actual sex doctor (not a line - he's got a phD) so it was very informative and not at all raunchy and embarrassing!

Jules has been talking a lot about having children. She and her good friend Ryan have been talking about having a kid for over a year now. I think she really wants to know what I think about it. I've given a general opinion so far but not a personal one. I'm not really sure what to say at this point, given that we've only been together for two months.

Today I'm grateful for:

* My brief chat with my American twin today :)
* Sleep
* The waitress at Denny's still remembering me even though I haven't been there in ages
* Getting some work done on the weekend
* Long weekends
* A little anger management

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Long Weekend

Well, for four days this week, I worked from 7 am to 7 or 8 pm. Tomorrow I have off but only because I'm going to an all day defensive driving course (to erase three demerits from my driving record). I am absolutely exhausted, but am persevering because, well, someone has to. People at work are flipping out left and right and I'm trying to ignore them all and continue doing my job. It seems once the busy season starts, everyone starts acting like babies. Nobody can take any pressure. Whatever. Business is business and what has to be done has to be done. End of story.

I'm hoping to relax tomorrow evening with Jules... Saturday morning I have to be back home because an ex-co-worker is dropping off a gift she brought me back from Africa. Then in the evening I'm off to a party with Jules and some of her friends. Sunday afternoon is Thanksgiving dinner... and then hopefully Monday I can get some work done on the laptop I brought home.

Jules is shocked that I am bringing her to thanksgiving dinner at my grandparents' place. I'm not out to my grandparents but I still bring my girlfriends around for important events. I introduce them as my friends and that's that. She finds this to be very significant but to me it was a no-brainer. She's really excited to go... probably because I mentioned that my grandmother makes homemade pumpkin pie. : )

I'm finding it very hard to find the time (or some nights energy) to blog on a daily basis. I really miss doing it though. :( I'm hoping work calms down a bit so I don't have to work such insane hours but we'll see, I guess...

Today I'm grateful for:

- My unbelievably understanding girlfriend
- A long weekend... or hell, a weekend longer than one day!!!
- My passport finally arriving in the mail (I sent it away June 8)
- My American twin {{{vibes}}}
- The possibility of a vacation at the end of the year

Saturday, September 29, 2007

&$^@#$%^&!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I worked six hours today and then decided to treat myself to a pedicure. I got a really cool dark blue colour put on my toes. I came home in a great, relaxed mood and then... I stubbed my toe. Fucked up the polish on two toes on my right foot. FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!!!!!! I grabbed my purse and went out searching for the colour. The closest I got was a colour about two shades lighter. Sigh..... bought it and put it on. You can't really tell from a normal distance... but up close it looks like hell.

So yeah, no more relaxed mood...

Exhausted Vent

It is soooooo hard to keep up with this freakin' work schedule. My goodness.... I just want to pass out for an entire week and have absolutely no one talk to me. I'm so cranky... I'm surprised I still have a girlfriend.

I start work around 8:30 am most days and work until 7-9 pm every night. Then I work an 8 hour shift on Saturday. And I'm *still* not caught up at work... hell, I'm barely maintaining! I hate not having a back-up!!!!

I think I'm going to be able to finally start training someone to be able to back up a few things that I do. It's the finding the time to do that though. I'm hoping within a month I can accomplish that. Thank goodness one of the managers is willing to give up one of their people for this. Not like it'll help me on a daily basis, but at least I'd be able to take some days off and/or pass off some work when I have insanely huge/important tasks that must be accomplished ASAP.

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend for recognizing that this too shall pass
* My elbow and shoulder for not aching as much today as it has for the past month
* My boss whom I can still call when I need help
* Sunday and next weekend... yay, days off!!

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Update

Okay, okay... I truly suck these days.

Every damn day I say, 'Self, you miss your blog... update your damn blog!' and then it gets to be late and I say, 'Self, you suck...'

Work is so crazy busy that I'm working until 7 pm most nights and on Saturday until 4 pm. Tomorrow I think I'll probably be in until 9 or 10 pm because I just have too much work right now.

I received a phone call today informing me that my gynecologist passed away suddenly, and that I will need to pick up my file by Friday at 4:30 pm. I was absolutely floored and the whole rest of my day was a little off because of it. How strange that the death of my gynecologist could upset me more than the death of my uncle last month. Then again, I have probably visited him more times than anyone sees theirs in their whole lifetime (and I was going to make an appointment later this week to see him again because I'm still in so much pain, etc.) and he has the best bedside manner. The one image that came to mind when I received the call was of myself sitting across from him at his desk and him saying, "Well my dear, we've had you go through so many tests and procedures and so far we haven't had much luck... but don't you worry, we're going to fix you up." Most doctors, after a few visits basically give up and say the same thing - "Well, let's just monitor how you're doing and if you find that the [insert symptoms here] doesn't/don't go away in a few weeks, come back and see me." which is basically a "Fuck if I know what the hell's wrong with you!" kiss off.

Anyway, I don't have the time to go to the office to pick up my file so I think I'm going to have to call and ask them if Jules can pick it up for me. His office is only five blocks away from her house.

To unwind this evening, my sister, Jules and I went to see Sydney White which I thought was pretty good. I love Amanda Bynes - she can always make me laugh.

I bought and tried a new body wash today. The only reason I'm mentioning something lame like that is because I really like it and it makes the whole bathroom smell really good. It's Dove's Cucumber and Green Tea body wash. Mmmmmmm.... I bought the hand soap counterpart as well.

Oh, and yeah... I received a speeding ticket this morning on the way to work. And best yet, when I handed over my insurance and registration, the cop noticed that my insurance was expired. It isn't expired but for whatever reason that I can't remember, I took out my current insurance slip for something and forgot to put it back in. So... yeah, because I didn't have my agent's number on me and because my insurance company's new branch was just a few blocks away, I received a police escort there so I could prove I had insurance so I wouldn't get a ticket on top of my speeding ticket. Jesus... what a way to start my day. I'm not angry that I received a speeding ticket - I totally deserved it. I'm more mad at myself for not putting my insurance slip back in my car. Oh well... live and learn. I've signed up for a defensive driving course through AMA (also my insurance company) to take off three demerits because I'm pretty sure I have six now...

Today I'm grateful for:

* The company Help Desk in MN...
* Jen for her e-mail updates (and her sense of humour)
* Not getting a second ticket
* My girlfriend for being so wonderful
* Having seen my friend before he flies back to Korea

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Okay, a little less cranky...

Off to Tim Horton's in a few minutes. Mmmmmm.... coffee.

I feel a little better this morning, probably because I slept 8 hours while only waking once around 1 am. I'm sore as all hell from last week's trauma, but it's slowly becoming more bearable as the morning progresses.

Tonight my sister invited me to her friend's album recording at some place in the city. It's hip-hop or rap or something... whatever... I'm bringing Jules and Ryan and we'll be drinking before it begins. ; )

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Still cranky...

I don't know what the hell's wrong with me lately. I'm in such a bitchy mood. Maybe it's PMS... hm...

Jules and I went to the Oilers/Panthers hockey game last night, courtesy of her boss and his executive suite. Now *that* is the way to enjoy a NHL hockey game... private bathroom, drinks, food, comfortable seats.... It also helps that the Oilers won. : )

On Sunday I had one of the most perfect lazy autumn days. It was gorgeous outside so we walked a couple of blocks to a restaurant for brunch and then walked around her neighbourhood which has a ton of little shops and stores. We found this really interesting bookstore and I found a great book on the rules of karma. Once I'm finished Viktor Frankl's Man's Search For Meaning I'm going to start it. We also found this great stationary store where I found really stylish Post-It Notes (I didn't know you could get To Do list post-its...cool) and eventually we parked ourselves on the patio at this really nice Starbucks where we read various newspapers and asked each other questions out of Love And Sex by Gregory Stock who was the author of The Book Of Questions. Eventually we wandered home and then went over to Safeway for some light grocery shopping (ie less than $50). When we got home, Jules put in the movie Elizabeth because she's totally psyched for the second movie coming out later on this fall. It was a pretty good movie, overall. Man, nobody could trust anyone back then. Anyone could be a traitor, if not initially then eventually after being bribed. Crazy.

I went to see The Brave One with Jules and her gay guy friend, Ryan. Ryan and I get along so well, it's scary. We could be the same person... or at least that's what Julie says. Anyway, the movie was pretty good although I think it could have had a little more substance. Let's face it though, Jodie Foster + revenge = hot.

I hope my American twin is doing well and resting comfortably this week...

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend
* Hockey season starting
* Late starts at work this week
* Free lunch at work tomorrow
* Gorgeous, crisp autumn days

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Cranky rant of sorts

I have been in such a bitchy mood this week. The fact that Jules still likes me (or rather loves me) is beyond me because I've been short and cranky all week. I think she understands because she saw how screwed up I was on Tuesday and Wednesday, plus she has major drama going on in her own life with her soon-to-be ex-wife and her ex-girlfriend and her ex-girlfriend's ex-wife. Jesus Christ, it's the fucking L-Word except not nearly as entertaining. She's been sharing everything with me and I've been getting really frustrated with how she's being so nice to them when they're totally taking advantage of her. And then, she tells me this afternoon that her wife went over to her place this morning and tried to put the moves on her (was trying to kiss her cheek and neck and wouldn't stop hugging her and wanted to lay down with her and hold her, etc. while telling her she smelled and looked so good and she loves her and has missed her...). Jules told me she felt so weird. I told her that it doesn't surprise me... that while her wife is waiting for her move to New Brunswick in two weeks, she still thinks she can have her wife until then.

Oh, the best though is how her wife refuses to have the reason of adultery put on the divorce papers. Who the fuck is she kidding?? Talk about not taking responsibility...

Okay, enough venting about that. I'm just tired and cranky... I worked 12 hours today.

Today I'm grateful for:

* The card I received in the mail
* OT to catch up on work
* My plans for tomorrow
* My shoulder/neck pain easing up a bit

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

One month

Today is the one month anniversary of my first date with Julie. We aren't doing anything for it because I'm at home suffering from a horrible muscle spasm that started at lunch time yesterday. She was here this morning though and she left me a note book detailing highlights from the past month by day. So sweet...

I went for ultrasound treatment on my right shoulder/neck area this morning and then spent the rest of the day trying to get comfortable at home. It's pretty sad when I had to get my mom to help me get dressed this morning and brush my hair because I absolutely cannot handle that kind of movement (hence why I did not go to work)...

On Friday Jules, Ryan (a close friend of Jules who is also gay... he's who I'm 'engaged' to on Facebook right now, lol...), and his boyfriend are going out for dinner and then going to see Jodie Foster's latest movie, The Brave One. I'm so excited... I can't wait to see the movie. Of course it'll end up being a work night for me because on Saturday I'm going to have to go in and work a full shift to make up for today. Just when I thought I'd caught up...

I have a stomach ache right now and I think it's caused from the massive amount of Advil I've taken today. Must stop that for a while...

{{{{{sending vibes to Jen}}}}}

Today I'm grateful for:

* An understanding temporary boss
* Being able to re-schedule my conference call to tomorrow
* Getting in for ultrasound treatment on short notice
* My girlfriend for getting up at 2:30 in the morning to rub my shoulder and neck for 20 minutes when I woke up in agony

Sunday, September 9, 2007

Weekend update

I worked a lot this weekend... getting the fiscal month of October scheduled. That's a load off of my mind now.

Lots of drama around my girlfriend and her, um, wife. Her wife is seriously messed up. It's such a strange situation...

I've been eating way too much junk this week. Candy, chocolate, pretzels, cake... what the hell??? Must stop doing that. I think the reason is that it's the only stuff I can eat that doesn't hurt my stomach (go figure)... for some reason I've had really really bad heartburn this week. It feels like a pill dissolved in my esophagus or something. Whenever food or drink passes a certain spot it's pure agony.

I'm having a bit of a hard time adjusting to the fact that I have this wonderful woman in my life who devotes so much attention to me. This afternoon I kind of mentioned how I wasn't used to it and it hurt her feelings. I had to back track later and tell her I was just being stupid. It is a little much for me right now, but I'm sure I'll get used to it. I don't know...

I hope my Ohio Jen is resting comfortably this evening and that she gets good news at the doctor tomorrow {{{{{vibes}}}}} I'm worried about her. :(

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend
* My sister
* Getting some work out of the way
* Feeling mostly better

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Worse today

I ended up coming home from work early today. I finally gave up at 1 pm after my boss said, "Take your germs home!"

I'm going to fall into bed and turn on my gorgeous television and finish The Sound Of Music... sounds wonderful.

Funny thing - when I'm sick, my eyes turn green. Weird, eh? I wonder why they do that...

Mild freak-out moments this past weekend/today... I think Julie's fallen in love with me. Actually, I know she has. I think I'm about 95% there myself... gosh. It's only been a month! Of course I've never had a relationship quite like this... it just all works so well, so who am I to say what time is right? It's still freaky though... I'm not used to being treated this well, like it's too good to be true. Perhaps I'm over thinking things a little. I told her I'm only in the present right now... not looking at the past or to the future... I'm just being in the present. She agreed to that, although I think because she's experienced a similar past to me that she can't help gushing about how well things are, etc. It's adorable but like I said, I'm not used to it.

Okay, time for my drug-induced nap...

My gratitude list is the same today as it was yesterday. : )

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Sick

Yesterday at work I started feeling a little off and when I got home I had a two hour nap and a hot bath to try to shake it off of me. I felt better by the time I left home to go to Julie's place... she cooked me dinner for the first time last night. It was sooooo good but I couldn't eat much because of how I was feeling. I started getting a sore throat last night and it was a little worse this morning. I had planned on sleeping in while Julie went to work but my cell phone kept ringing. It was work of course and I ended up having to have a freakin' conference call with marketing people in Mississauga over artwork for new products we're launching next month. I'm sitting there in my pyjamas and tousled hair and they're asking me if I have the artwork in front of me. Um... no.

After the call I suddenly felt like total shit. I barely crawled back into bed before passing out. Julie came home at noon and I barely knew she was even there. She went to the drug store and got me some drugs and soup and then I was up for a couple of hours before having to sleep again. The day was a complete write-off but at least I had a wonderful girl to look after me. Despite all of the sleeping I've done today, I think that when I go to sleep in a few minutes that I'll pass out quickly. I really hope I feel better tomorrow... work is unbearable when under the weather...

Today I'm grateful for:

* My girlfriend for taking care of me
* My temporary boss at work
* My day off that ended up being a sick day
* The Hairspray soundtrack

Saturday, September 1, 2007

I made a decision... how unlike me!

My god, I'm getting terrible with this updating thing... damn vortex of first stage-ness!

I'm at Julie's (aka The British Girl) place waiting for her to get her stuff together so we can go back to my place and set up the brand new television I picked up today.

God... I spent $850 on a fucking television!!! Well, it was six something but I paid for a 4 year warranty (because god knows something will happen...) so it came out over eight.

It's a Toshiba 26" gorgeous LCD television... I'm in love with it. I'm not in love with knowing I'll be spending the rest of the month paying it off of my visa account, but whatever... I gave in finally.

Last night I took Julie to see Hairspray and I loved it just as much this time as I did the first. I really want the soundtrack because it's a great pick-me-up. Next up I'd like to see The Nanny Diaries because I loved the book.

I think a trip will be made to Home Sense at some point today or tomorrow. I love that store for it's bargains of linens and dishes and glasses, etc.

I went to the dentist for a cleaning yesterday and actually fell asleep while they were cleaning my teeth. All I heard was, "Ah! I'm sorry!" because my mouth had closed and she almost gouged me in the face with whatever she was using. That's how tired I am these days... I can pass out while getting my teeth worked on.

My parents are acting strange lately because I haven't been home much. I honestly think they like me single and at home... hm... well that's not going to work. So far there hasn't been much time to introduce them to Julie (my parents are rather anti-social now that I think about it) so they don't really know what to think yet. My sisters seem to like her a lot though, so that's good enough for me.

It's so stupid... I have today, Sunday and Tuesday off... but I'm working Labour Day Monday. What the hell is wrong with me? Oh yeah, I have a brand new TV to pay for... yes, double time and a half for the sake of the television.

My passport is still held up somewhere in Quebec. I've left two messages but have not had anyone get back to me. Why the hell did they tell me to leave a message for them then??? Isn't it obvious that I'm the only person who is renewing their passport this year??? Mine is very important, dammit... I have a trip coming up, um... sometime... so clearly, it should be rushed!!!

My goodness, I've missed writing down my thoughts.

Today I'm grateful for:

* My sister
* My girlfriend
* The work week stress easing off a bit
* Getting my laundry mostly finished before the weekend started
* Finally making a TV decision
* The weekend

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Sigh...

Why is it that when my personal life is going great, my work life is absolute shit??? I don't get it...

Friday, August 24, 2007

A snapshot, if you will...

It's nearly 5 am and I'm up with horrible cramps. I've taken a Tylenol 3 but that was just over an hour ago and the fucking codeine doesn't seem to be taking the edge off at all. I hate being a woman during this time. Ugh...

I need to catch up but I'm not sure I have the energy. I'll give it a go anyway because I've missed posting on a near daily basis.

Needless to say, I'm dating the British girl and it's going fantastically. Yesterday, she sent me flowers at work. The whole office was practically going nuts trying to figure out who 'J' was...heh. She sent me lilies because we had recently watched Imagine Me & You and I have a huge crush on Lena Heady... so incredibly sweet, especially on a rough day at work.

We had an outing to Ikea and Old Navy yesterday evening. I picked up another pair of jeans (I adore the other ones I purchased last week) and a pair of pyjama bottoms because mine are all way too big for me to wear anymore. She made me laugh because when I opened the door to show her how the jeans looked, she came into the dressing room, closed the door and kissed me senseless before promptly leaving the room saying, "Yeah, they look great, sis. I'm going to go get mom..."

At Ikea we were mattress testing (Ikea has a big 20% off sale on right now) before picking up a couple of clocks (for my work) and some kitchen stuff (for her kitchen). Before we knew it, it was 9 pm and we were starving, so we went to Swiss Chalet where there was this family there with three kids under the age of 8... all of them drinking pop and eating dessert, wired for sound and running all over the place shrieking. I could not believe the parents who just sat there and ignored the whole thing. How do you ply your children with sugar at that time of night, never mind control them in a restaurant? My goodness... it was almost like watching one of those nanny shows.

Despite it being after 10 pm when we arrived back at her place, she convinced me to drive over a few blocks to the provincial museum grounds as she wanted to show me something. My goodness... the view on the grounds is stunning... right on the high edge of the North Saskatchewan river bank, the South side of the city was spread out beneath us in a twinkle of orange and yellow lights. It was raining lightly so the sky was soft and misty... it was very beautiful. I will definitely need to return to that area and take a picture when it's clearer...

I've now popped a second Tylenol 3. This one better work, dammit... work is going to be brutal enough as it is. Fiscal month end always blows because I have to stay 12+ hrs on a Friday night. Add excruciating cramps to the mix and I want to freakin' die...

I purchased a crazy book called The Straight Girl's Guide To Sleeping With Chicks off of Amazon last week. It was one of the suggestions that came up after I added Bound to my checkout bin. I read the introduction online and laughed out loud a few times so I thought it'd be a funny read, despite my not being straight. So far it's definitely lived up to the expectation... and really, let's face it, you haven't learned anything until you've seen published pictures of barbie dolls in compromising positions.

I see that the sun is coming up now and I really hope that either my cramps have subsided to a more manageable level by the time I need to leave for work in an hour or that time simply stops and I can sleep for eight hours. Something tells me neither will happen...

This weekend will be when my parents and sisters (if they're around) meet the British girl. I find myself oddly nervous because I never know which side my family will show... but I'm sure it'll all go alright. Hopefully.

I think I will go back to flipping through Maclean's magazine... I certainly did not know that Michael Buble and Emily Blunt have been dating for nearly two years. Wow. Interesting pair. Michael is on tour right now with Jann Arden opening for him. I would love to see that concert. I think the magazine said the tour was stopping in Canada in the winter...

Today I'm grateful for:

* Drugs. God, what would I do without codeine...
* Friends who still love me even though I've been sucked into the 'new relationship' vortex
* Unexpected surprises
* My co-workers who know I'm gay (all two of them) who diffused the guessing game at work when the flowers came. Bless them...
* The wonderful girl I've met who has already shown me many things I realize I've been missing in past relationships all my life.
* My parents and sisters already knowing that I'm gay so that bringing a girl around is not a big deal...