This Time of Year

This is the doldrums time of year for me. It's hump time. That time when we reach the midpoint of the winter season, and start to dream of warmer temperatures and green grass and sailing.

It's also that time of year for sickness and flu bugs....and that's where I've been. A bit buggy.

The past five days have been spent resting under blankets, sweating a lot, and drinking hot liquids.

Ug.

Today I am feeling 90 percent better. The fever is gone (as are the associated aches), and I am eating normal food again.

Still have clogged nose and mild cough.

The worst part of this has been that I missed the Bodyjam 43 launch last Thursday night. One of my gym buds sent me some YouTube videos to see what I missed.

*sigh*

Friday's Feast - One Hundred and Seventy-Six

Welcome to Feast One Hundred & Seventy-Six
for
Friday, January 18, 2008

Pull up a chair and dig in!
Friday's Feast is a meme of five questions
cooked up by the chef each and every week.
Enjoy!

Appetizer
What is your favorite beverage?

I love Iced Capps....but I don't have them very often, especially not during the winter because those drinks are just soooo cold.

Soup
Name 3 things that are on your computer desk at home or work.

My Tiffany lamp, my cup warmer, family pictures....plus kitty things and pics everywhere.

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest), how honest do you think you are?

To be honest, I am a 10. I am honest to a fault.

Main Course
If you could change the name of one city in the world, what would you rename it and why?

Not quite sure how to answer this question, so I decided to check out the Net and see what popped up. What I found was a gathering of some pretty odd names of cities. Would I change them? Probably not. That's just the rebel in me I guess. Living wild (heh).

Ypsilanti, Michigan

French Lick, Indiana

Hell, Texas

Iran, Texas

***** Island, Newfoundland

Intercourse, Pennsylvania

Condom, France

Batman, Turkey

Hornytown, North Carolina

Satans Kingdom, Vermont

Lord Herefords Knob, Scotland

******'s Corner, Oregon

Dessert
What stresses you out? What calms you down?

Work usually stresses me out, but exercise always calms me down.

I Am Not a Hooker

Sometimes My Sweetie and I have the strangest conversations, which usually end up with me writing the strangest posts.

We were discussing germs, and who currently has a cold/flu bug, and how they possibly got it.

The scenarios are easy to imagine. The person who coughs politely into his/her hand, and then offers someone a friendly handshake. Little did the recipient know that they possibly got a good dose of some flavourful bug.

The conversation turned to the washing of hands. My sweetie, who, unlike me, is in a unique position to know, tells me that many men do not wash their hands after they go to the bathroom. (My Sweetie is not one of those men.)

Aaaaaaaaaaarrggghhh!

Now, I have to say that this totally disgusts me. The idea that some guy has just done his business, and has casually walked away from the urinal with gosh knows what on his hands...I mean I know what he had in his hands, but it's not there anymore, and now something else is there in the way of vile and despicable germs.

What is it with you guys out there, and you know who you are, who can't be bothered washing up?

I don't think I'll shake a stranger (male) hand ever again!

If I wanted to handle germs in this manner, I'd be working in a whole different...uhm... area of the economy. Can you say "hooker"?

Well I'm not, and I won't be, so wash up, you guys!!!

(clipart courtesy of fotosearch.com)

A Couple of Things

My Sweetie sent me these. I had heard of National De-Lurking week, and then got busy with stuff, but those kinds of celebrations don't go away, hence this post.

My sidebar is going to sport these 2 little icons, in the hopes that maybe just one or two of you will come out from under your rock and leave me a wee bit of words. It's not so much that I judge a blog by the number of comments that one has per post. Nope. But sometimes it's just nice to know that there are actual living breathing bodies out there, who bother to stop by during their frightfully busy day.

So go on....don't be afraid....de-lurk.....leave a comment.

You'll be glad you did.

Boat Show Countdown

For some time now, I have had the Boat Show Countdown on my sidebar. It's finally here....tomorrow!

This is a big schmooze day for us. We usually meet up with fellow sailors (well mostly sailors....there might be a few stink potters there).

It'll be a long day for sure, with lots of walking and ogling of pretty vessels. I'd like to find a new sit-on kayak if there are any to be had. Usually there are a number of companies that show up with their 'stuff'.

The Boat Show is also the time when we begin our countdown to launch day, based on the number of garbage days left. So, from tomorrow then, til say April 25th, there will be 15 garbage days left.

Pretty stinky way of looking at things, but keeps us going.

Happy sailing!

Thar She Blows

Why do they always refer to wind as she? Anyway, she is really blowing outside today. The roaring of the wind is so loud, it sounds like a freight train. Outside, a child's snow boggan went whirring by....possibly to find a landing spot in the nearby park. Garbage can lids, leftover from last garbage day, are flying through the air like flying saucers.

Our old BBQ has blown over. Thankfully, the new one is still standing.

There is one lone recycle blue box that ventured too far from home, and had landed on a neighbour's front yard. It had not been claimed, and sat perched on top of a large snow bank for quite some time. Now that the snow is almost all melted, the box was resting on the ground.

This morning, I noticed it travelling possibly home.

Hold on to your hats folks.....

Wine and Dine

First of all, Happy New Year all! May 2008 be a most excellent one for you.

We almost stayed home last night, then in our usual state of unplanned-ness, we ventured out to perhaps have a nice, quiet dinner somewhere. It was early in the evening, around 5pm. One of our favourite places was already overflowing in the parking lot, so we drove away and wondered where to go next. Our choices were limited by My Sweetie's apparel, who was dressed in jeans, albeit nice, expensive jeans.

We decided to try a downtown place that was new for us, but had been recommended. The price was not bad....not cheap, but not horrendous considering it was New Year's Eve. We still had the issue of Sweetie's apparel to deal with, so we left without a reservation, and drove across town so that he could put his ball gown on (kidding). We finally called in a reservation, and were lucky to get an early seating spot.

The place was nicely outfitted for the occasion, and the food was fantastic. It was a set menu for the evening, so no choices...but then there was also no need.

Now, back to my title post 'Wine and Dine'. As we were eating, I was watching people pass by and getting ready to join countless others for the eve. I was slowly getting fired up to celebrate the arrival of the new year.

My new theme is '6 feet under or 6 feet over...your choice'. I prefer the latter, and to ring in the new year with other alive bodies. I am one of those people who love to be outside with hundreds or thousands of strangers, all ushering in the new year and freezing our butts off. I deplore being stuck in a bar, watching other people get smashed (personal note - I do not drink alcohol of any kind).

This year, our city hosted the Canadian rock band April Wine, a popular band from the early 70's who still make music. I had seen them waaaay back in the 70's when they played at Place des Nations in Montreal. I remember them being a band worth seeing. I really wanted to be able to see them again, so over dinner, we decided that we would head home, change into warm clothes, and get a spot in the downtown square with 15 thousand other revellers.

Now, back to dinner for a minute. We were in the middle of our dinner, and the table near us had just been served dessert. Two of the diners had to suddenly leave. Sweetie thought this was odd behaviour, and said that if he didn't know better, he would think that it could be someone form the band leaving to get ready.

......now wouldn't that be funny....

...but it was TRUE!!! When the band came on stage, there he was! Breen Leboeuf!!! We wined and dined with Breen Leboeuf of April Wine!!

....well, not quite but sort of....and it was enough to make my evening....

Cheers!

Do-Gooders

There are do-gooders in our world. They still exist. Do-gooders are not usually boisterous or loud. Do-gooders tend to work quietly.

Just like today.

We went to do a bit of shopping, mostly for food, but also for a few small post-Christmas items. We arrived at the cash and were waiting to pay, when the lady behind us asked if we wanted to use this gift card that she had in her hand. It was worth $20. She said she had shopped as much as she wanted to and offered the card.

Do-gooders....be watchful...they show up when you least expect it.

p.s. - I hit 10,000!!! (thank you all for visiting).

Fermenting Blog

This has been a busy Christmas season, and I seem to have neglected my poor blog. However, during my absence, my blog seems to have fermented, and in the process, appears to be approaching 10,000 hits! This is very cool, seeing as I have only been a blogger for about a year and a half.

Every now and then I peruse the Traffic feed, and sometimes I find some interesting fellow bloggers creating some equally interesting things. Take for example Finding life Hard. One day, I noticed this particular link, and decided to check it out. The blog has a link to a YouTube video called 'Harvey - my life as a dog' (although I am not a dog person - really!).

The video will melt your heart (really - I am NOT a dog person!!)

Enjoy!
Signed KittyLady

Transported Back in Time

Today, I visited a fellow blogger's site, where this Christmas is the first without a parent. Having been in that situation, I left a comment about how my Dad loved Christmas as well.

While this was sad for me, as this season surely can be, at that particular point in time I was transported back to my childhood home.

My Dad loved Christmas. He loved decorating the house, both inside and outside. There were paper bells (you know the ones....they're just like wedding bells, except that they were red or green and they unfolded and clipped together to form a bell) hanging from the doorways. Garland strung from the curtain rods. Inflatable Santas and accompanying scenery (thanks to my dolls who had to wait in line for their special). There were decorations that played music. Even the budgie's cage was wrapped in Christmas paper, complete with a bow.

Now, just last week, I was again transported back to my childhood. I have these really old ornaments that my parents had bought when they were first married. They are made out of a papier mache type of material, and are quite fragile. There are 2o Santa soldier (at least that's what they look like), a Santa in his sleigh, 2 small Santa boots and 2 large Santa boots. Once again, when I pull these ornaments out each year, I remember. It's funny how things like that can bring you back in time in a flash of a moment.

I guess my memories keep my warm too.

Warm in Heart, Worn on Feet

Today was my vacation day, and I spent it working on a local charity event called Christmas Cheer. Toys and food are donated from the public and corporate sponsors, and volunteers (comme moi) come and help to pack the food and toys for designated families in need.

This was my second year helping with this, and though my feet are a little worn, my heart is very warm. This day always leaves me both in awe and extremely touched by the generosity of the public. I was manning the canned tuna and salmon area.

1500 boxes of food were packed and distributed. Awesome.

If you get A-Channel News, you'll catch a glimpse of me with tuna and salmon in hand. I am wearing a red and white scarf.

Merry Christmas...it is surely coming......

Holiday Thoughts

It's been crazy busy around here. Work has been crazy busy. Social life has been crazy busy. Add in the regular holiday prep crazy busy.

This is really the first opportunity that I have had to blog. Or any real interest. Just too crazy busy.

Anyway, through all of the crazy busy, I have managed to take some time to reflect. It always happens at some point during the season. When I pull out the Christmas decorations from years past, listen to the Christmas carols. It's a feeling of almost sadness.

But then, I manage to turn the sadness around, and that sadness turns to warmth. That warmth happens when I give.

For me, this is the season for giving, not receiving. There are so many people who have nothing. They may have lost everything in a fire. They may have had nothing to begin with. For me, it's a way to show thanks.

Yesterday I gave. And I will continue to give.

And I will be warm inside.

Fire Last Night in Town

There was a. See here huge fire in downtown Barrie last night. We were in that area earlier last night, about a block away from where this happened.

One of the buildings that was lost was the old wellington Hotel, est. circa 1880's.

This season is such an oxymoron type of season, full of joy for some people, but also full of sadness for others. This is a bad time of year for this to happen. There is never a good time for a fire, however, but many people are now without a home and lost everything. Knowing this town, people will chip in and help in whatever way that they can.

Luckily nobody was hurt or killed.

Friday's Feast - One Hundred and Seventy

Welcome to Feast One Hundred & Seventy
for
Friday, November 30th, 2007

Pull up a chair and dig in!
Friday's Feast is a meme of five questions
cooked up by the chef each and every week.
Enjoy!

Appetizer
What is your favorite carnival/amusement park ride?

Always the roller coasters...all of them!

Soup
How do you react in uncomfortable social situations?

*blush*

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy discussing deep, philosophical topics?

I enjoy those discussions, but only when the other person hasn't been drinking alcohol. Always best to be on the same wavelength so to speak.

Main Course
Did you get a flu shot this year? If not, do you plan to?

I did not, and I may...we'll see.

Dessert
Approximately how many hours per week do you spend watching television?

No matter what number I admit to, it will probably be wrong, so I have to take a guess between 10 and 20.

Chasing Cars Revisited

In Chasing Cars and Chasing Cars (The Sequel) I talked about my love of cars and how many cars this household has had over the years.

How many cars you might ask? Lots....countless...and come December 15th, we will have yet another new vehicle in the driveway.

Now, it's not like there was a list of vehicles to choose from. That would have been too easy. My Sweetie examined all of the possibilities, and then came up with a short list which were considered to be the best in certain areas.

The hunt began there. This was not an untiring hunt.

There are countless vehicles out there these days. There are cars. There are trucks. There are SUVs. There are CUVs. You can assume that we saw them all, and in some cases, we saw some more than once...or twice.

Some have the best safety features. Some have the most add-ons. Some are the most fuel efficient. I guess that's what makes it most confusing and difficult to decide.

How is a person supposed to get the best bang for the buck? Good question.

We looked at many aspects....comfort, fuel efficiency, environmentally friendly, size, sun-roof, heated leather seats (not kidding).

In the end we made a choice that we feel is a smart choice. If you checkout my sidebar, you'll see my countdown to the arrival of the new babe.

Reality TV Recap

Late again...blame it on whatever. Just busy.

*post may contain spoiler info, in case you haven't seen any of last week's shows.

America's next Top Model

Lisa went home last week. I liked her, and thought that she had a good chance, obviously someone else is better. The show is now down to the final 5. My faves? Chantal and Saleisha. Heather's condition is now causing her problems I think.

Survivor: China
Nobody went home last week, because it was the traditional recap episode (see how much they starved on Day 21?). There is still unfinished business left from 2 weeks ago, where someone else probably needs to go home. We'll find out soon enough. Meanwhile, I am still backing James .



The Amazing Race
Another bickering couple goes home. They probably bickered before they got on the show, but that is neither here nor there. While the show is exciting in that one gets to see some pretty amazing scenery, the relationships in this particular group are a bit tense. I think the longer they have to run around the continents, the more fragile the relationships will be.

Dancing with the Stars
An exciting dance-off last night. While I am rooting for Marie, I really think that Mel and Max will take it. Again, it is dependent on the audience vote, so one can never be too sure.

Beauty and the Geek

Down to the final 2 couples, since Will and Jenn went home. They never really got along, so their departure was fitting.

Two-Time Caption Winner

Yay! I won again! Thank you for voting!

Skittles Place features a caption game every week, and I really enjoy taking part in that. She posts a picture of something, and then asks readers to create a caption. After the suggestions are in, people vote on the caption they like best, and a 'special' prize is awarded.

While it is always nice to win, sometimes it is even nicer to pass the prize on to others. With that, I am depositing a little giftie to jennifer because she mentioned that she really wanted some love dice.

When Commercials are Scarier Than TV Programs

Last night, Grey's Anatomy was on TV. Brilliant show. I adore this program, and last night was exceptional. I won't go into any details for the benefit of those who have not yet seen last night's episode, however, it was a cliffhanger (and disturbing to the nerves).

Somewhat equally disturbing to the nerves is a set of Workperson's Comp ads. These are downright frightful. I know what you're going to say. They're supposed to frighten you. But these are, in my opinion, over the top.

There is one ad in particular, which depicts a lady working in a restaurant who slips on a greasy floor, and is badly injured after being burned.

I was left shaking when I first saw this ad, and it still upsets me whenever I see it.

What's the purpose of having an ad if you can't bear to watch it?

I guess I have to use Mau control and switch to another station.

Thanksgiving in the U.S.A.

One of my US friends sent me this, so I am passing on to all of my US readers. Have a great holiday!

'TWAS THE NIGHT OF THANKSGIVING,
BUT I JUST COULDN'T SLEEP,
I TRIED COUNTING BACKWARDS,
I TRIED COUNTING SHEEP.

THE LEFTOVERS BECKONED -
THE DARK MEAT AND WHITE,
BUT I FOUGHT THE TEMPTATION
WITH ALL OF MY MIGHT.

TOSSING AND TURNING
IN DELIGHTFUL ANTICIPATION,
MY THOUGHTS OF A SNACK
BECAME INFATUATION.

SO I RACED TO THE KITCHEN,
FLUNG OPEN THE DOOR,
AND GAZED AT A FRIDGE
FULL OF GOODIES GALORE.

I FELT MYSELF SWELLING
SO PLUMP AND SO ROUND,
'TILL ALL OF A SUDDEN
I ROSE OFF THE GROUND.

I CRASHED THROUGH THE CEILING,
FLOATED INTO THE SKY,
WITH A MOUTHFUL OF STUFFING
AND A HANDFUL OF PIE.

BUT I MANAGED TO YELL
AS I SOARED PAST THE TREES,
HAPPY EATING TO ALL,
PASS THE CRANBERRIES PLEASE.

MAY YOUR STUFFING BE TASTY,
MAY YOUR TURKEY BE PLUMP,
MAY YOUR POTATOES AND GRAVY
HAVE NARY A LUMP.

MAY YOUR YAMS BE DELICIOUS,
MAY YOUR PIES TAKE THE PRIZE,
MAY YOUR THANKSGIVING DINNER
STAY OFF OF YOUR THIGHS.

(Note: BJ is celebrating today, along with his fellow U.S. feline friends.

He just luvs turkey.)

Political Correctness Gone Crazy

The other day, there was an editorial in the local paper about Santa's use of HO-HO-HO in the Santa Claus parade. Because rappers use the word ho in many songs, and that has a negative meaning, now HO-HO-HO is being viewed negatively.

The recommendation is to use HA-HA-HA instead.

Can you just picture it? Santa screaming HA-HA-HA like a maniac? Possibly scaring the reindeer right off the float?

I can't help but think of some other Christmassy words that could be eliminated from seasonal tunes:

don we now our gay apparel (from Deck the Halls)
Frosty the snowman, is a fairy tale they say (from Frosty the Snowman)
to save us all from Satan's power (from God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen)

This is crazy (or maybe I am not supposed to use that word).

oh-oh-oh