Happy Birthday!!

It's my blog's birthday today!! One year.

In celebration, I made this cake:

Just kidding. I totally didn't make this cake. And as if I'd make a cake for a blog. But I would blog about a blog's birthday. And I did. I am. Right now. See?

(If I don't make anyone else laugh....at least I make myself laugh...)

P.S. To whomever made this cake - kudos. It's a nice cake.

A Bear Picnic

My co-worker and friend Jacqui is getting ready to sell her house soon. So, she's doing the usual cleaning and de-cluttering involved. Since she has lived in her house for over 18 years she has a lot of things to go through. Her soon-to-be husband called her at work today to tell her he went through the cupboards and found tons of food that was too old to keep. Instead of throwing it all away, he decided to put it all in a big box and hop on the four-wheeler to drive it out to the bush....for the bears.

All day today, Jacqui and I have been cracking up imagining this bear picnic. As time passes, this is getting funnier and funnier to us. How great is it to picture a bear eating Chef Boyardee and chugging back some OJ? I can't stop laughing.

We imagine that the bears are bored of eating blueberries and chipmunks...(or whatever bears eat) and are moping around muttering "oh bother" in an Eeyore-like voice. So imagine their surprise when they find this box of treasures!! That is the mother of all lotteries.

There will be high-fives all around the forest.

In a completely serious manner, Jacqui just said to me; "You know, I had a lot of old beans in that cupboard....those poor bears are going to be gassy".

At some point today life threw me a curve ball. Because this morning I was thinking about groceries and bills and now I'm thinking about bear farts.

Heads up to anyone who lives down the line. There's a pretty rockin' bush party going on tonight.....

Thankful

There is no real point to this blog, except to say this:

I am so happy to live in a city where traffic stops for funerals and emergency vehicles. I don't know if big city folks experience this (if you live in a big city...or any city really - please reply because I'd like to know).

One of my best friend's is a paramedic in Toronto and she has told me that driving an ambulance through Toronto traffic is awful and people do not give them the right of way. Horrible.

Yesterday was a busy Saturday afternoon and as I was driving through town I saw a funeral procession. I was so pleased to see everyone pull over and wait. It is nice to have that still moment where life just stops to pay respect to someone who has passed.

I live in a good place. And I like that.

Favourite(s) of the Day: Two things: (1) Winning 2nd place in my women's finals today!! (2) After spending the last two nights sleeping in a tent, I am quite happy to be in my warm, soft bed listening to a rainstorm and ready for dreamland. Goodnight.

Bumcials

I know I am biased in thinking my nieces are the funniest kids on the planet. They make me laugh all the time.  Here is yet another example of how they put a smile on my face:

We were eating dinner at my parents one night.  Usually when this takes place, there is a constant background noise of four girls running around, giggling and screaming.  On this particular day they were being unusually quiet.  After awhile, I was curious. I knew they were playing in my old bedroom so I went to find them.  They were no longer in there but I found this note on the bed: 

Later, as we sat down for dinner I said "So, ladies, I was wondering what a bumcial is?" Ryea, the oldest, turned red as the others began to giggle.   They explained they were running their own spa.  They were offering facials, pedicures, manicures and as noted above, bumcials and bellycials.  I asked what a bumcial was. They explained it was similar to a facial, where you'd get some nice cream and cucumbers put on your bum. 

The rest of the conversation went like this:

Auntie Sara:   "Hmm, well that sounds nice" 

Ryea: "Ya, except we didn't have any of that stuff" 

Auntie Sara: "What did you have" 

Jana: "well, we found this old chapstick" 

Auntie Sara: "Lovely.  Did anyone get a bumcial?" 

Jana: "DARIENNE!!!  She has chapstick on her butt!!" 

This was followed by erupted laughter....including my own.  

God, I love those kids. 

Myself and Darienne...the lucky recipient of the bumcial 

Favourite of the Day:  I slept for 13 hours last night!! It was much needed sleep and felt good.

This was a good day...

I haven't shared a Roy story in awhile. This one is short but sweet.

Opening Scene: I am sitting on the couch watching t.v. Roy emerges from his bedroom and starts to put on his shoes. It is probably around 8pm or so. Wondering where he could be going at this hour, my curiosity is peaked.

Sara: "So, where are you headed?"

Roy: "To catch a wolverine."

Sara: "WHAT?"

Roy: "Ya, I've been reading about them in my new book from the library. I found out what forests they live in too. I think I can catch one. "

Sara: (trying to be supportive and not sarcastic): 'Um, no. Bad idea."

Roy: "Really, I think I probably can"

Sara: "No, really - bad idea. You could try, but it might kill you in the process. Plus, what would actually do with it once you caught it?"

Closing scene: Roy takes off his shoes and goes back into his bedroom.



Favourite of the Day: Dancing with Damian to the "Wiggles". Even though the Wiggles are creepy, weird men, I enjoyed doing the "Twist" with him today.

Man's Best Friend

For 15 years I had a Golden Retriever named Amber.  She was the best dog anyone could ask for. Having to put her to sleep (on my birthday....geez) was one of the hardest things I've ever done and is still the reason I refuse to watch "Marley and Me".   It hurts to even think about that day. 

Years after she passed, when I was adjusting to living alone, I went to the Humane Society and found a companion in a sweet little orange cat I named Steve.  He was my buddy who followed me everywhere and loved to cuddle. I've met some jerk cats in my life and I was blessed to find an awesome one. Sadly, he got very sick and I had to put him down too.  I buried him on a cold rainy day in my parent's backyard. 

After taking a break from having pets for awhile I find myself longing for one again.  I want something to cuddle with at the end of a long day.  I know how great the companionship you can find in a pet can be.  But I also question my luck.  With Amber and Steve being as great as they were, could I be so lucky to find one to even compare? 

I am trying to convince myself that a pet is a bad idea for me right now.  I've come up with a list of 'Con's'.   I am not going to a do a 'Pro's' list because I already know what they are and I'm trying to keep that door closed at this point in time.  

So, here we go: 

• Picking up a dog's warm poop in a bag is gross 
• I don't have a fenced yard 
• Cat pee stinks. A lot. 
• Cats leave litter trails all over the floor
• There is currently no fur on my couch, my clothes or in my bed
• When I want to sleep in, I don't have to wake up to let a dog out
• Winters are cold and going outside when it's -25 sucks
• Vet bills are very expensive
• Cats with nails scratch furniture
• De-clawing a cat is cruel (but I'd still do it) and expensive
• I don't want to adjust my busy schedule to come home to let a dog out
• I work 10 hour shifts...a long time to leave a dog home alone
• Having to put animals down is awful 

If you have anything to add to my list, I welcome your negative feedback with open arms. 

To pee or not to pee

I just woke up from a 'pee dream'. You know when you have to pee in real life and your entire dream is focused around peeing? It's really frustrating and consumes your every move. In the dream I just had I was playing baseball at an old school and was debating if I had time to run down the road to pee at someone's house before I was up to bat. Everyone said I did. So off I went and I tried to hurry but no matter how fast I tried to go I couldn't speed up. When I finally got back, I missed my at bat and took an 'out' and everyone was mad. And I STILL had to pee. AUGH.

So, I finally woke up. On one hand, relieved and excited to finally pee. On the other hand, angry because I was frustrated and that's just not a great way to start the day. I know there are some people out there who dream they are peeing and then pee in real life. I'm happy I'm not one of them. But all in all, I really hate pee dreams.

Armando, my BFF

Tonight I had a random memory of something dumb I did years ago. In University one of my classes had assigned seating. It was 'Psychology 101'. I loved this. I wished more classes had assigned seating and I have no idea why. Anyway, day after day I would stare at the tall guy ahead me who was blocking my view. Instead of actually paying attention and learning like I should have been, I started thinking about this guy. I would make up stories in my head about his life. I would make time pass by entertaining myself with his ficticious story. I named him "Armando". He just looked like an Armando to me. We never once spoke and I doubt we even made eye contact.

After a few weeks of staring at the back of his head I noticed he never once wore the same coat two days in a row. Never. This fascinated me. During these cold winter months I wondered how one could possibly have so many winter coats and rotate them so randomly. Or was it random? Then I became obsessed. Was he an anal, OCD-ish guy who purposely rotated things on a schedule? Was everything in his life like that? I wanted to 'catch' him making a mistake. I started making little checks in the back of my notebook to see if there were a pattern to the coats he wore. This consumed my semester and I looked forward to his arrival every day.

He never made a mistake. Not even from a Friday over the weekend to the Monday - All semester. I think I got a 'C' in that class. In Psych of all things. I bet I would have gotten an 'A' if I didn't care what kind of coats people were wearing.

Honestly, who was the nutbar here? What did I think I would accomplish if he did make a mistake? Would I call him out on it, like I won somehow? Really. I'm an idiot.

I want that tuition money back.



Favourite of the Day: Last night I slept on the top bunk of a bunk bed. I haven't done that in at least 15 years and I felt like I was back at summer camp when I was a kid. The memory was completed when I heard my niece in the bunk below smoke her head off the ladder....twice.

But it IS a good deal...

Does anyone else still have strong urges to buy those "Teen Packs" they sell in Drug Stores this time of year?

just wondering

My Gram

It was two years ago today that my grandma died.  It is weird how fast time goes by sometimes. I feel like it was yesterday.  The day she died I felt more peaceful than I thought I would/should.  I didn't react in the way I imagined I might.  She had been ill and in pain for quite some time and I think I felt a little relieved knowing she didn't have to live like that anymore.  The thing I was most sad about then, and still now, is knowing that my own mother no longer has her mother. The whole situation has been hard on my mom and that makes me sad.  

Growing up, I spent a lot of time with my Grandma.  Our family was close. When I close my eyes and think of her, I see her in the kitchen.  She was an amazing cook.  Always cooking for us and feeding us.  She was famous for her pie.  Coconut Cream was her best, I'd say...but it's a tough call.  

My gram was loving and hard working.  She always took care of us.  She is so many of the things my mom is today.  While she was a lot things, funny wasn't one of them.  That is - until the end. Maybe it was the combination of all the medication she was on and maybe she lost her mind a bit.  But she suddenly started cracking jokes and making us laugh and it was awesome.  I like remembering that about her at the end of her life.  

It has always made me sad that I never had the chance to know either of my grandfathers. One died before I was born, the other when I was just an infant.  I love hearing stories about them and I've often imagined what they were like and how our relationships would have been. Though they both sounded like two very different men, they sounded like amazing people I would have loved to know.  I also would have loved the chance to see both my grandma's with the men they loved and raised their family's with.  

I have a lot of thoughts going through my head today.  I know I think too much sometimes and I wish there were days I could just turn my brain off.  But I can't.  So instead I am reminding myself that life teaches you lessons sometimes and you need to learn from them.  Then move on.  As I think of this today, I think of my Gram and priorities.  To spend time with people you love and cherish the memories you make together.  Today, more than other days, I'm trying to remember "don't sweat the small stuff".