Month: May 2008

Healthy day

I cycled from here to Vancouver General and ALMOST all the way back – I was only about ten blocks from home and realized I just didn’t have it, so I also learned (thanks to a really snarly driver) how to get the bike on and off the rack at the front of the bus.  Such a lecture your poor correspondent received!

Now I am about to jump on the bus again to go to RCH for my other appointment, and then home.  Where I hope to just collapse.

While I was waiting at the clinic, the Luddite called with the best route home. He had guessed when I’d be sitting waiting and planned how to get home with the minimum of hills.  I didn’t do it of course, being contrary, but it was ever so sweet of him.

perfectly normal pork chops

The meal last night was yummy – the pork chops were precisely at that place where doneness and juiciness intersect.  I learned a little more of the new barbecue’s ways so that I will not be helpless when it comes to searing meat.

The Luddite was here and was entertaining.  His take on reality is so skewed that I find myself cracking up repeatedly.  We traded backrubs while Mayday! was on.  Jeff cracked up himself when he learned that one definitive way to shut me up is to work on my feet.  You never know when a piece of information like that could save your life, or your sanity at very least.
I like the Mayday! show, except when I think about travelling to France on a jet aircraft…
The stove has been fixed.  The stove elements now work in perfect congress.
Rogers is still dicking around with the phone service.  I’d give details, but I’ll let Jeff provide them if he feels like it. The phone works, but the billing is like a nightmare from the consumerist.com website.

My pay issue at work has been resolved.  That was annoying, but like most things it was easier to fix when I stopped being mad.  My raise wasn’t added effective 1st April like it was supposed to be – the explanation was apologetic and the action plan acceptable.
I am off to collect some more hepatitis shots and get a mammogram.  I’m going to ride my bicycle to the place I’m collecting my shots and then take the transit home, and then leave for my appointment at RCH.  Now that the weather is better I’m going to try to get some exercise any day it isn’t pouring rain.  I’m thinking of my last mammogram – almost 15 years ago now – in Montreal, when I got to listen to a boundlessly cheerful tech say, “Ne respirez PAS de TOUT!”  “RESpirEZ!” about a hundred times.  Then I went to listen to the results from an urbane Francophone doctor, who tapped the films in front of him and said, with equal cheerfulness, “Zat is a perfec’ly normal breast!”   Hmf.  There is nothing perfectly normal about me…. but those are words I sure want to hear again.

Jericho

Jericho Beach Folk was loads of fun.  Cameron Latimer was really good, but his dobro player and upright bassist were superlative.  No names for them unfortunately, but there can’t be TOO many dobro players hereabouts who are dead ringers for Joss Whedon.

Luddite comes by this evening.  He has been fighting with raspberries and apparently winning.  This is good, cause his raspberry bushes are very large and he’s been tending them for over a decade.  In fact, one of the first things he told me was that he was a very big raspberry fan, which I found entirely charming.

Oooo

You ever get the feeling that you MUST learn what the lyrics are?

I have had the worst 7777ing case of “mondegreen” for the last 6 weeks or so.  The playlist on my MP3 player currently includes the B52’s Love Shack.  Towards the end Cindy yells ….. something.  Honestly, I knew it wasn’t Tanned and Rested, but that’s the only thing my auditory skills could make of the syllables.  It’s actually Tinned roof, rusted.  Now how the hell was I s’posed to figure that out?

Keith here for supper, to pick up the coffee maker and AGAIN forget his taxes (something he’d stop doing if he ever read this blog and learned the manner in which his uncle was mercilessly mocking all but his split screen geekery) and of course I haven’t done mine, so I can hardly lampoon anybody.

The low ebb continues.

The downstairs neighbours’ dog jumped on me.  Basically if the dog sees me it jumps on me.  There’s nothing mean or threatening about it, Meadow’s an adorable dog, just really really poorly trained.

Spaghetti and meat sauce for dinner.  Crudites on the side.

I hear crying from the basement.  Now yelling.  Certain areas of the downstairs resonate more than others.

It’s hard to practice.  I’m going to give the guitar a whirl and see if it stayed in tune.

Beautiful sky

The sky is pink, peach and lilac right now; a song sparrow is providing aural punctuation. I like this kitchen table. Oh, look; cat puke. I can’ t really complain, it’s outside on the deck.

Yesterday was a really good day for getting things done. I found my tax stuff, or at least most of it; I replaced my bank card, got new guitar strings, unpacked some boxes, did a small shop, made chocolate banana muffins, removed four pounds of fur (at least) from Eddie, who is visibly more svelte after his many grooming sessions, cleaned the bathroom fixtures, made club sandwiches for lunch (they were REALLY good), hung the Serenity and labyrinth quilts mOm made for me (as well as the heron plaque) and started clearing leftovers out of the fridge, & made an appointment to get my next set of hep shots (and then I’ll be a hepcat, w00t). Yeah, it’s all little stuff but it felt SO good to get some stuff off the list instead of onto it.

Jeff’s day was similarly productive, and included chaining down the barbecue, supervising the repairman who came to look at the stove, and putting up pegs at the back door, which will keep my coat from being draped over any chair I get close to.

Then, some BSGs3 and DeadwoodS3 – For the Deadwood episodes, this is my third time through the series and I’m STILL getting stuff I didn’t see the first & second time through. It’s a damned dense series. I am also seeing nuances in the acting I didn’t get the first time. Titus Welliver is CUTE. Sorry. I just think he is.

Later, Iron Man.  And maybe Mike will drop by after work.  And I definitely need to make some phone calls.  My girlfriends will be thinking I’ve forgotten all about them if I don’t touch base with them soon.

Jericho starts next week – Tuesday night.  I have to start practicing today as well and change guitar strings.

Saturday roundup

The fourth building block of circuitry built and tested.

Chipper sent that link.

Defining atheism – harder than it sounds.

Stuffed bats. And other plush toys. From one of my LJ buddies.

Sleepy bear. Sorry about the commercial first. And the Nepalese demonstrators getting truncheoned afterwards.

Albino Kangaroo. Aw.

How mad was this guy? Mad enough to buy his adversary’s company’s name as a domain name and post a lot of really angry, and quite justified, comments. For anyone who’s ever been screwed in a used car transaction……

What colour blind people see.

I have conquered an ongoing, crazy-making, recurring low grade bacterial issue with a simple household substance. Given that it’s been bugging me for 18 months and I got rid of it in 48 hours, I am REALLY HAPPY. No, I’m not going to provide details, but believe me, you would be happy too.

Daughter Katie made a date with me to see the next Narnia film when it comes out.

Paul and Keith here last night. Paul dropped off Ginger Chicken (which is funny, because I was talking about it at the lunch table yesterday) and we all watched The Name of The Rose which we quite enjoyed. They went home after the movie around ten.

Raining buckets…. Eddie woke me up at 5 yowling on the back deck.

My back really hurts. I want to go walking someplace today, but see previous paragraph re rain.

Today I have to go get a new bank card, and do some other boring bank stuff, put away laundry, try to find my tax stuff, shove some things into boxes for the storage locker, restring my guitar, itsy bitsy oddsy sodsy stuff.