Okay....

Instead of writing a gazillion reasons as to why I haven't been posting here, I'm going to ask a single question instead:

Who wants to read my book?

What I've been doing with my days....

Writing dating profiles....like the following:

My self-summary

Okay here goes: Maybe I'm just a romantic at heart, but I've always figured if I'm meant to be with someone, somehow it will just work out.
How naive. I guess I'm going to have to make more of an effort - which is why I'm here.
So what do you want to know about me? I don't know, I'm well-educated, I like bright people but don't believe that it's universities or schools that make people bright - it's more about who you are. I've travelled quite a lot - have lived outside of Canada for a while but missed the 'true north' and had to come back. That being said, I'd still like to see so many more places...Chile, Galapagos Islands, Northwest Territories - they're all on my wish list and yeah, they have nothing in common.
What else? I love animals - I have a cat named Monster, am thinking about a adopting a second one and calling it Maniac - though I'd really love to get a Newfoundlander and name it Puppy. Maybe I should have put that under things I spend a lot of time thinking about...
My summer weekends are spent up north as much as possible - I love the outdoors, campfires and swimming in those cold blackwater lakes. I like to be active and I'm training for a half-marathon - but if you're one of those people that can qualify for the Boston marathon - I will never be your running partner ;)
Well that's all I have for now...not sure if this is really a self-summary or a collection of random thoughts. Same thing maybe?

What I’m doing with my life

Not waiting for retirement to cross things off my bucket list.

I’m really good at

Moving. And yes, there's a story behind that...

The first things people usually notice about me

My sass... I've had people comment about my eyes and/or my smile, but that was just too easy.

Favorite books, movies, shows, music, and food

My favourite book is Crow Lake - but I'll read just about anything - well, except for Science Fiction or anything that starts with the words "Fifty Shades..." I'm not a very good follower.
I love movies, shows, tv...entertainment really, but I also like to do things - not just watch. I love long dinners that include a glass or two or wine and interesting conversations among friends punctuated with lots of laughter....organic laughter is the best. That also kind of answers the question about food I'm guessing...

The six things I could never do without

Passport, the cottage, good friends, good wine, good conversations and lots of laughter.

I spend a lot of time thinking about

Different ways I can continue to avoid finishing the book I'm writing...I feel guilty if it's just inane activities so random courses or training for a half marathon seem like viable excuses.

On a typical Friday night I am

..doing something. I hope...

Texting

Texting - I've never been a big fan, but I'm beginning to hate it.

Why?  Well, I think it's overused and often misused - disguising people's bad behaviour.  My real problem with it is that texting is taking over phoning.  When did actually picking up the phone and phoning someone become so passe??

This past weekend, I had a little get together with some friends - and a number of people who had accepted, text to say they weren't coming.  So - okay - at least some text before the evening started, but not before I had planned for a certain number of people to actually be there.  I guess life happens, but why not just call?  It's far more polite. Seriously - are people afraid to pick up the phone and make contact?  Truthfully, I'm not that perturbed about it- I just find it annoying - but what's inspired my mini-rant is someone texting me the day AFTER the event.

Seriously?  I really think that's rude.

Pedantic?  I don't think so.  I would only text my apologies if I was trying to avoid someone - so not only is it rude, it's cowardly.

Oh - and by the way - despite my complaining about non-attenders (and only last minute, just before they were suppose to arrive, non-attenders) I had a really nice time with the group that did show.  I'll even consider doing something again.

I want to tell stories

There's a long story behind that statement, but I'll get to that eventually, I just don't have the energy for it today but I thought it was important to write down some of the wonderful great moments of insight I've been having during my 40 degree Celsius fever ride and subsequent codeine flights of fancy over the last week

At some point during one of those long stints of lying in bed with a wet washcloth on my forehead I asked myself what it was I really wanted to do with my life and I very clearly answered: "I want to write stories."

During another stint, I realised that I don't want to write fiction.  I like telling little vignettes from my life - not because I want to tell stories about me, but that I tell stories from the instant 'scenes' I see when I people watch in life.  The funny, amusing, strange, eccentric things that people do.

I also somehow decided that it had to be from my life, not my imagination, because I just think if I made them up, they'd sound, well... made up.

Funny how a 40 degree fever can just make you cut to the chase.

Old Men in Hardware Stores

A friend I know has been trained to run Myers Briggs tests - you know the personality thingys? (very scientific of me, I know....)  When I told her what my personality type was, her response was, "Oh, so that explains why you're always late."

Now most people would be insulted by that, but me? I was just happy to hear that I'm not late out of disrespect for other people's time - as many people think - it has something to do with me wanting to maximize every minute.  (I know, I know, that's not exactly what she told me, but that's what I heard (aka wanted to hear) so I'm sticking with it - makes me sound pretty cool, all in all)

So true to form, I had plans yesterday to go to the quarter final CFL game (Arrgggoooossss!!!  (to you non-Torontonians, no matter how much time I spent trying to explain that - you'd never get it - just know that's its sports related) and I was supposed to be there at 12:30 for the 1:00 pm game.  Unfortunately for the person I was meeting, it was the first time she'd ever done anything socially with me (she's from work - and at work, I'm always on time....).

Although I'd gotten up at 8:30 (really early for me on a Sunday) somehow it wasn't until 11:30 that I realised that the hardware store would be closed by the time the game was over, so I had to go right then if I was going to get the drill I needed.  I know, I know I could have gone on the Monday, but I wanted to fix my towel rack and put up my mirror and fix my scarf rack THAT day, not the next.

At least I text to say I'd be 10 minutes late before heading out.  it would have worked if it hadn't been for the old men....

Just FYI?  I guess it's nice that the hardware stores hire retirees (like Walmart...) but NOT when it screws with my day.

There was a special display on drill sets and since I had bought the wrong thing the day before, I really did need to check with someone who knew something about power tools before leaving.  Special display - you'd think it'd be fast, wouldn't you?  But no, apparently Sunday it special retiree day.  Put a retired couple needing a drill in front of a retiree showing all the bells and whistles of two types of drill sets, I was so fucked.  (I was going to say doomed, but really, that's just too pansy of a word.)

So me, the ever-so patient one, stood for about 10 seconds waiting before going to the next aisle to check out drills and see if I could do it myself, which took about 10 seconds for doubt to creep in, so I headed back to the demonstration table and the retirees were waxing on, "This is the best deal ..." yadda, yadda, yadda....

I thought about just picking up one of the cases and heading to the cash, but it just seemed like more than I could ever possibly use.  Twenty seconds in and I couldn't take it anymore, so I went back to aisle and looked at the stocked shelf but instead of dissipating in the 20 seconds I'd been waiting at the table, the doubt I had been feeling had only grown, so I headed back to the table again.

This time, the conversation sounded like it was wrapping up, with the husband of the couple saying, "Well, I'll just pick up one of these boxes."  And in picking up the box, I figured that they were done, but no, I forgot they were retirees, they were only beginning.  Finally the old men stopped talking and I thought it was over but NOoooo, the old woman with the cane chimed in.

And just when I thought I couldn't bear it a moment longer, I hear her saying, "So John saw what I was doing and said, "Honey, I'm going to buy you a new drill.""

So many parts of that sentence caused mini explosions in my brain.  I must have made some kind of sound or moved in some way because the lady happened to notice I was there (FINALLY!!!!!!) and said, "Oh, I think this young girl is waiting."

She called me young, so that gives you a clue as to how old she was.

Now normally I actually have a great deal of patience for the older generation, but I was already late - if I'd only been 5 minutes in the store - which was my plan - I'd have been on time, but the delay of the old couple, plus the delay of the swap over of staff (seriously, I guess they have a quota of one customer per shift....) and then the added delay of the two staff talking about their coffees (I'm still so annoyed, I can't even fully recount what happened, but just know that it added about 10 minutes to my shopping experience) meant I didn't have a hope in hell of being on  time.

I know I should never have tried to make it to the hardware store and back in such a small window of time, but if everything had gone according to plan, I'd have made it.  I just never for a moment thought I needed to plan for the Old Men in the hardware store.

I managed to get my drill and leave without screaming, but I'm pretty sure those guys were unimpressed by my representation of the younger generation.

Sorry y'all.  I just gave us all a bad rep.

My year of football

I went to a Western Mustangs football game at the end of September (University)
I went to a game in Buffalo a couple of weeks ago (NFL)
I went to the Argos quarter final today (CFL)
I'm going to a Broncos game in Mile High stadium next weekend in Denver (NFL)
The weekend after is the 100th Grey Cup (CFL)
I might be going to another Bills game in Buffalo on the 2nd (though that's looking iffy...) (NFL)
And I'm definitely going on the 16th to the Bills game in Toronto (NFL)

Life is good.

Life is very good.

I don't hate Christmas this year

Yes, that is newsworthy. To be perfectly honest, I'm a little surprised by that.  Now, I'm never going to be the one that's like 'Hey, Wow!  Christmas is coming!"  and have that make me inexplicably happy and giggly.  Nor am I going to rush to get decorations or make my own gingerbread house (though I do LOVE gingerbread) but I did find that today as I was walking around, I didn't run screaming from stores when I heard the Christmas music and I even found that the Christmas stuff at Starbucks is kinda nice.

Some of it.

Some of it's tacky as hell, but isn't tacky what makes Christmas Christmas?

I'll confess to buying their Joy tea.  One would think that someone who drinks so much of it might start to take after it's name, but I'm not making any promises. (which means it's never gonna happen...)  And I even found myself contemplating buying their red & white Christmas mug set but 1. they're waaayyy too expensive for just some old mugs and 2. this mug thing has just got to stop.  I almost have more mugs than pajamas now, so that's just wrong....

Still banning the Christmas cards and presents thing this year (unless I'm spending Christmas day with you, then we'll have to talk....) but I'm not as strongly negative toward the holiday as I was last year.

I'd say I've slipped into neutral.

:)