Yesterday was pretty steady. We knocked off around 4 and had dinner at the folks’ place, then cruised back here after stopping off for Apricot Ale (link removed for safety) which is rather delightful stuff, and watched the EPIC director’s cut of Kingdom of Heaven (which I loved but I can see why it was panned) and then the little gem The Secret Life of Words. Heartshattering and beautiful – that was the movie which got Sarah Polley acquainted with Julie Christie – and we all know how that turned out.
Author: Allegra
Born when atmospheric carbon was 316 PPM. Settled on MST country since 1997. Parent, grandparent.
Consensus definition (from the work of Naughty Scotty (M. Scott Peck))
“Consensus is a group decision – which some members may not feel is the best decision but which they can all live with, support, and commit themselves to not undermine – arrived at without voting, through a process whereby the issues are fully aired, all members feel that they have been adequately heard, in which everyone has equal power and responsibility, and different degrees of influence by virtue of individual stubbornness or charisma are avoided, so that all are satisfied with the process. The process requires the members to be emotionally present and engaged; frank in a loving, mutually respectful manner; sensitive to each other; to be selfless, dispassionate, and capable of emptying themselves; and possessing a paradoxical awareness of both people and time, including knowing when the solution is satisfactory, and that it is time to stop and not re-open the discussion until such time that the group determines a need for revision.” [© 1988, Valley Diagnostic, Medical, and Surgical Clinic, Inc. of Harlingen, Texas and the Foundation for Community Encouragement, Knoxville, Tennessee, reprinted with permission.]
More packing
Fast forward to 4:55 it that’s the audio what you want…..
I have a cough and cold but I’m ignoring it. Today, more packing and maybe more movies. After we knocked off yesterday, we watched three movies. Radio Days (it was on my lifetime list and MAN did I enjoy it), Eulogy (OMG what a great movie) and Eastern Promises (fabulous movie, and the naked fight in the bathhouse was all it was billed to be and more).
Jeff has provisionally agreed to the Friday Night Veg-In being reinstituted in our new home. The Friday night Veg-In will be two Fridays a month. You show up after work with whatever you are planning to drink (or contribute to the beer jar) and you get a) one free meal b) one free movie c) adult conversation… That’s the last 4th Friday of the month. Second Friday will be kid friendly; depending on the age of the kids we’ll either watch in the living room or I can ride herd on kids in the guest bedroom or depending on the weather we can go play in the park across the street. Can’t let my grandmother in waiting skills get all rusty. I can’t even remember these days whether you’re supposed to swing a toddler by it’s arm or it’s leg.
No, I’m not trying to scare anyone with the grandmother comment. Last I checked, Keith was not situated to provide me with grandchildren, and Katie shudders from head to foot in a fashion only to be described as Grand Guignol-esque if you even breathe a hint about the possibility. Dang, it’s almost ten o’clock, time to attack the boxing situation again.
I’m sleeping so well I’m wondering if I should just say screw it and buy a softer mattress. I sleep better on a soft sprung mattress than on foam, that’s for sure. I slept like a log in the DR and that mattress was as soft as a waterbed, damned near.
Anyway, I’m having a lovely time..
I just rolled $300 in change
So I guess I can say Jeff’s keeping me busy; next up, the kitchen. We are having a good time and Radiohead is playing in the background. The new album is great. One thing about living with Jeff, we have similar enough tastes in music to have a good time and different enough not to get boring.
Valentine’s meeting
On the way down the hill into work I ran into Dances with Sheep. He gratefully accepted a biscotti and invited me to go kayaking later this month. I’m not one hundred per cent sure I have the gear for it, weather wise, but it sure sounds like fun.
It’s been bally ages since I posted a good moose pic
Yeah!!!!
Do not click here unless you have a strong stomach
I mean it. But Happy Valentine’s Day anyway!!!!
note to self – read ALL mail before posting
Chipper forwarded this. It appears to be real, but the language usage is so bizarre that it is as if it was backtranslated from Finnish. It’s a list of computer term etymologies.
It is all connected
Catherine told me about Selkirk Rex kitties. I couldn’t find the one she was telling me about so this one will have to do. I love the fur, and the enormous eyes. Then she told me that there’s a video of a kitten getting into a Rottie’s face; I couldn’t find that either but check out the following.
Cause cats pwning dogs never gets old….
Okay, more disparity in size, same principle.
Change of pace:
Yeah, I don’t like Cosmo either.
The Luddite sent me this one…
A duo performing I WILL SURVIVE in a way that will RENDER IT IMPOSSIBLE for you to ever hear that song without snickering, ever, again.
I am streaming with tears, having watched this lovely cross post from the Luddite. What’s Opera Doc brought into the 21st century.
I’m waiting for my biscotti to cool. I’ve done all of my valentine cards and now I just need a quick shower and I’ll be ready for work. Sundae this afternoon in the caf!!!
Nurse Nelly Nurdles!!!!
My dad used to make unholy amounts of fun of my mother for reading Harlequin Romances – and yes, I did read a fair amount of them myself when I was younger. He called them Nurse Nelly Nurdles and implied that her brains were turning into necrotic mush anytime she relaxed with one.
So herewith, the internet’s premier collection of BOOKS WITH NURSES.
The cover art alone is worth the price of admission.
New place
Look what we are going to beclose to.
Renfrew Pool (which has NUDE SWIMS) is .75 miles away, on 22nd.
There are FIFTEEN restaurants within half a mile.
There are EIGHT grocery stores, including a 7/11, within half a mile.
The nearest government liquor store is less than a mile away.
The nearest drugstore is less than a mile away.
The nearest fish market is less than half a mile away.
The nearest bakery is less than half a mile away.
The nearest meat store (halal, even) is less than a mile away.
The nearest Superstore is less than a mile away.
Closest dentist, less than half a mile.
Nearest doctor and medical lab, less than a mile away.
Tom’s Video is exactly a mile away. There’s a lot of stuff in there you would probably never want to rent (mucho anime and bad kung fu movies) but there is a HUGE selection.
Happy Bats video is less than four miles away.
Little bit of everything
My explosive happiness of the last couple of days has simmered down somewhat. I have all new shiny tunes on my music player, and I set foot out the door yesterday to the strains of Dion’s “The Wanderer” and next up was Verve’s “Bittersweet Symphony” which, inshallah, will be played at my funeral. Work was work and Trevor got up at lunch so I could sit down, so that was nice. Then on the way home I turned around and walked backwards for a while so I could listen to Dylan’s “Visions of Johanna” and watch the sunset at the same time. Today I’m going to lunch with my boss and someone from one of the furrin offices. Monday I had the second best workmeeting of all time (the best one was with two of the US office guys and a pitcher of beer); the convenor, who has been with the company less than a year but has always impressed me as a very clever man, ran things in a very collaborative and fun way, and the other person was my colleague from day one at the company whom I reverence greatly (he ALWAYS sends me fraternal greetings on International Women’s Day, which is beyond words sweet) and we actually accomplished what the meeting set out to do which is how meetings go when you have the right people in the room and the wrong people aren’t invited. And minutes were provided within a day. Yeah. That’s how things should be, gorramit.
I light a brace of candles for my gran, who essentially hasn’t been sick since she was recovering from gall bladder surgery, which I think was back when tv had been invented but the colour hadn’t, and who is finding her current trials painful and frankly undignified (but not life threatening). Given that she is the sweetest woman who ever trod this ball of mud, I wish her speedy relief so she can get back to more interesting activities.
mOm is dejunking…. she is dejunking an immense piece of guilt inducing junk onto somebody who’s doing handsprings of gleeee at the prospect of receiving it, and the person who gave her the guilt inducing junk is the one who suggested it. That’s what I call win win. I mean, when the person who’s getting the junk is paying to have it crated and shipped…. this is success! And no, it’s not junk. But one of the definitions of junk is ‘useful stuff in the wrong place’ and this terrible blockage will be cleared, with satisfying results, shortly.
I am working on the Valentine’s cards for work. One must be careful. But one must live up to one’s reputation as well…. not always an easy balance to strike.
Katie had her first day of work at her new job yesterday and pronounced it tolerable, except that it is JUST BARELY on the other side of the line in terms of zones for bus passes. Personally I think she should walk it but you know kids these days.
I am SO looking forward to purchasing a bicycle. And actually living someplace I can use it! I never did get rid of my bike helmet (or my motorcycle helmet, as I secretly believe that one day I will again have a sweetie who rides) because I didn’t want to give up that last bit of hope I’d use it.
This weekend I’m off to the Island to help my bro pack. I am looking forward to that as well. Hope he’s got lots of good things for me to cook in the fridge. Hint hint.
I have much curtailed my beer consumption, which is good. Quoth the Luddite, “You don’t have to stop on my account,” after suggesting we go pick up beer to take back to is place and I’m thinking, “But I don’t need to drink beer when you’re around.” Ah, I’m just being socially malleable. If my friends all drank and smoked, I probably would too… no spine, that’s me. I am going to bed at a reasonable hour and not spending hours on the computer. All good so far…. can it last? Probably not; the cheerfulness is probably just an artifact of having the sun on my face when I went home last night, after months of darkness.
Oh, snap. My printer is out of ink. Think fast about this!!!! what shall I do? Oh, yeah, there’s a reprographic place in this building, it’s not like I just ran out of airspeed, altitude and options all at the same time.
Cats. There will be cats back in my life! Eddie and Gizmo are wonderful, staunch, middle aged cats. Nothing too spectacular, except Gizmo took a dog out once, and both of them are mighty hunters.
Happy Valentines Day
Holy crap, I’ve been Dugg!
A podcast of one my homilies. An extremely snarky comment herewith deleted.