back to work...and on to Christmas

It's been a busy couple weeks, I finally started back to work, which was both satisfying and tiring. It was very slow which is excellent as it allowed me to slowly ease back into working, and since my week starts on Wednesday but I got Christmas off I ended up only working 4 days this week...PERFECT!! I have to head in tomorrow for the next 5 days, but then I get 4 days off in January, so it should all work out fabulously!

As for Christmas, it was wonderful. Busy, but amazing. There is something so magical about Christmas; I get to see family I don't see the other 11 months of the year, nobody fights and nobody argues.

I love the holiday season! I do however hate the consumerism and materialism that are taking over the holiday, but I don't want to be a hypocrite, I definitely enjoy giving and receiving gifts. I think our presents were well received this year, everyone seemed to have smiles on their faces as they tore open their presents...

I of course was no exception...I was spoiled silly and received many presents, but took a photo of my favourites. In the photo you will see my cute "underdog" tee and strawberry shortcake (i.e. cake cakes) pj pants, my new tripod which should work with my Nikon and our digital cameras, a Jack Johnson DVD that includes 2 seperate concerts (In Between Dreams AND On & On), a Burts Bee's foot cream gift pack (which I asked for specifically and ended up with two of), TWO new pairs of leather gloves (that's what happens when my Dad goes shopping), a new hot pot (just trust me it makes yummy yummy food), Alfred Sung "Forever" perfume and new 16oz boxing gloves. Unfortunately, what you might not see in the picture is a new large bottle of tantric lovers essential oil; it's so small it got hidden between the boxing gloves and the burts bees.

I had a great Christmas...I hope yours was too!

another week...

I was hoping to return to work and life yesterday, but a quick trip to the doctor on tuesday crushed that dream!! Of course being told I have to sit at home and watch tv for another week isn't exactly punishment, but the boredom has set in at full tilt. I have crocheted a ton of hats and scarfs, wrapped nearly all the christmas presents, watched oodles of movies and spent hours on the computer in the last three weeks.

BUT my face works! And that's really what's important!

I'm going on my first official outting in a month this saturday. I debated whether I should attend, but I really want to go and I don't want to waste the money, so I'm going to try and stay warm but attend. Attend what you ask?

A Christmas Carol Boat Cruise! Some of J's friends go every year, and although it is not his thing; a boat AND christmas carols AND dancing definitley sounds like fun to me, so I'm going with his friends and leaving him at home. Should be fun fun fun, so long as I can find something cute but fun to wear!!

Busy Days

Things to do today
How can I possibly be so busy when I haven't worked in 2.5 weeks?

• Buy a present for my dad
• Buy a present for j
• Take the recycling out
• Buy Fire Logs
• Make Lunch (mmm I bought frozen dim sum, that was worth it)
• Clean off dining room table (if you've been to my house, you know that's a chore)
  
  This is the line that exists between the things I have already done (above) and the things I'm still going to try and do today!
  
  
• Iron j's clothes for the FW christmas party tommorow
• Test the water in the fish tanks
• Sew a button back onto j's shorts
• Paint a christmas door hanger for our nephew
• Crochet a scarf (work on it at least)
• Get Boxes (to wrap presents)
• Wrap presents
• Empty the Dishwasher
• Laundry
• Make dinner

Wow, I think I better stop here, its already 3:30 and I could end up spending the rest of the afternoon writing a list of things to do...and that really wouldn't accomplish anything would it?

yummy

Fresh Baked Pillsbury Chocolate Chunk Cookie
Covered in Tin Roof Sundae Ice Cream
Drizzled with Strawberry and Caramel Sauce

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

Tarot Spread: Relating

Now is the time to contribute patience without anxiety, all that is necessary of one's self is to be alert, calm and patient while the right moment, the right time, presents itself. Like the image on the card, it is a time to be passive and allow nature to run its course regardless if it takes the passing of many moons. I must not be sleepy or indifferent, but wait with ease and a peace of heart for the change that is to come.

When we take the time to be still and wait our inner self is given the time to grow and to develop. With time, the inner self will burst forward in this life.

My partner in life struggles to find the master within, to find the power to accept life as it is given to him without need to create change for his own benefit. "Together, [we] create an energy field that supports each individual in finding his or her own light."

Once the separation between the self and the mind is found, one has the freedom to behave only in ways that bring joy, fulfillment and happiness to ones life. Which makes the experience of life a work of art and great beauty. As we find ourselves we will find our freedom.


Society teaches us to be strong, to have a brave face and never expose our pain and hurt to the world around us. We become trapped within ourselves, where it becomes easier to remain frozen than endure the pain that will set us free.

Together we need to break out of our isolation and find it within ourselves to be free with each other. Together, with our energy we can help one another melt the layer that finds its way between us.

To make this happen, we must become like the water; relaxed, peaceful, passive and receptive. We must allow the world and our life around us to exist without wishing things were different or trying to change the natural state of being. This card assures us that now is the time to have faith that life will support us, that we can float on the currents of experience without worry or harm. Remember, water has no ego or desire to be extraordinary or unique and yet it holds both power and beauty, everything is occurring just as it was meant to.

Readings taken with OSHO ZEN TAROT CARDS
http://www.osho.com/tarot

procrastination fodder

"PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail-in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard."

I love this website, it is updated on Sundays and I find some sort of peace or solace in sharing in the secrets & fears of strangers. There are so many possibilities, so much to contemplate, so much to be thankful for and so much love to be shared.

In addition to the website there is a traveling exhibit featuring postcards, a post secret book was recently released and postcards have been featured in an "All-American Rejects" music video.

http://postsecret.blogspot.com

Bell's Palsy

I was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy a week ago.

I woke up from a nap with J tuesday afternoon, and my face felt a little weird but since I had fallen asleep on his arm, I quickly attributed the odd sensation to a kink in my neck. I remember trying to eat some cereal, and as I slid the spoon out of my mouth, I felt the milk dribble out from between my lips, but I thought nothing of it.

On wednesday, my face still felt odd, I remember glancing in the mirror, but I failed notice anything disconcerting. Still certain I had a kink in my neck, I headed off to kick-boxing with the hope of loosening up all my joints and muscles. When I arrived home however, J noticed that my face looked a little "wonky".

I seemed to be sneering instead of smiling, the entire left side of my face was pretty much maintaining the status quo rather than participating in emotions and expressions.

And so, thursday morning brought me to the doctors office. Bell's Palsy is a partial and (usually) temporary paralysis of the face that is caused by a virus (they don't know which virus however) that attacks the nerves in the face. They think that it is associated with stress or a weakened immune system, but there is no real hard facts about where it comes from or why people get it. Since it is a viral issue, the remedy includes not leaving the house and taking large doses or steroids (to minimize swelling around the nerve).

The first few days were very upsetting and fairly devastating. I didn't want to look at myself and I didn't want anyone looking at me, and yet I didn't fully want to be alone. Thankfully there is no shortage of people, whom I love so much, who dropped in and out to give me hugs and love and comfort.

I have been feeling my mood increase over the last few days, and yesterday, I noticed some cheek bone movement on the left side of my face when I smiled. This is especially encouraging as my doctor told me she has never seen the condition degenerate, once it has begun to improve.

I'm still scheduled for another week and a half of recovery, surely I'll be stir-crazy by then, but so long as my face works, I promise not to complain...

My colour...

You are the color turquoise. A fairly tempermental person, you're either upset or tranquil most of the time. You can be as calm as your color. You're a mysterious person, yet somehow outgoing. You're balanced, simply put. You're somewhat bold. You're generous and sophisticated--but never ever snobby. You're lively and rich in personality and attitude.You're a beautiful person, aside from the fact that you're a perfectionist and painfully honest. But life is good to you!

What color are you?
brought to you by

Email Survey - Boredem at Work!

A bunch of the numbers seem to be missing, but I am home bored anyways, so here goes:

1. What time is it? 10:27am
2. Name as it appears on your Birth Certificate? This is the internet, how about initials AMTC
3. Name most people call you? Amber
4. Parent's names? Mom and Dad
5. Number of candles on your last birthday cake? 24
6. Favorite celebrity? Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Garner
7. Favorite animal? favourite is to hard, I like dogs and cats and hedgehogs...

8...8...going once...

9. Tattoo? It's an amalgamation of things that are important to me: happiness, water, sun, earth
10. Where did you put it? Right shoulder
11. Piercing: 8 with jewelry
12. Birthplace: Richmond BC
13. Favorite vacation spot? More research is definitely needed ;)
14. Ever been to Africa? One day
15. Stolen any traffic signs? I don't think so, although I may have been with people who did...Guilty by association?
16. Ever been toilet papering: nope (that's right...Never...I tend to follow rules)
17. Ever been in a car accident? Unfortunately
18. Croutons or bacon bits? I'd rather have cheese
19. Salad Dressing? Thousand Islands (hated it as a kid though)
20. Favorite Pie? My mom's apple pie
21. Favorite Number? 6
22. Favorite Movie Of all time? Impossible to answer
23. Favorite Color? Orange!!
24. Favorite Holiday? I love the spirit but hate materialism at Christmas
25. Favorite food: mmm, probably Chinese food, likely noodles
26. Favorite restaurant: I'm not good at favourite
27. Favorite fast food: Fast food is kinda icky, I try not to enjoy it
28. Favorite drink: coffee or juice
29. Favorite ice cream: french vanilla or chocolate peanut butter
32. Favorite TV shows? Alias, Lost, L-word
33. Toothpaste? The whitening kind, Crest I think
34. Most recently read book? Started on the Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon again
35. Favorite Smell? Nature
36. Favorite Sound? Nature

you see what I mean about the missing numbers?

48. Before this one, from who did you get your last email from? There's so much damn junk mail these days
49. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? It's so hard, just one store...I heard Macy's has everything...Although the travel agency idea is pretty good too.
50. Bedtime: Around 11:15 depending how much Jon Stewart interests me
51. Who are you most curious about their responses to this questionnaire: I hate these questions
52. Last person you went out to dinner with? I can't remember, and I don't want to look for my planner
53. Ford or Chevy? I refuse to participate in this debate, I just don't care enough
54. What are you listening to right now? "Inked" on A & E is on in the background! mmm tattoos!
55. Lake, Ocean or river: Water...I'm not that picky, although lake's are the nicest for swimming
56. Which came first? God or Evolution? I don't think its a matter of what came first, but rather which you believe...I'm a scientist...EVOLUTION baby!
57. How many people are you sending this e-mail to: no one...Just posting it here
58. Furthermost place you sent this message? The internet is a big place!
59. Who will respond the fastest: likely no one
60. Least likely to respond? As above
61. What time is it now? 10:41 but I had to stop and take things out of the oven!

ARGH!

http://www.bellspalsy.ws/

holiday schedule

With the holidays approaching, we finally had to have the work sit down and sort out the holiday work schedule. Perhaps you are thinking, hey it would be cool if we could try and hook up over the holiday season, so here it is.

I have to work most of the week between Christmas and New Years (which is slightly disappointing, as J usually takes that week off). I do however have December 25, 26, & 27 off which is DAMN lucky considering someone has to come to work 365 days of the year, and I managed to get all three of these Christmas days off. With respect to the new year, I have Monday January 2 to Thursday January 5 off, and then I will resume my normal schedule of Monday and Tuesday's off.

So if you have something exciting planned, or would like to try and hang out over the break, those are the days I will be free, the sooner we touch base, the more likely it will all work out!

Happy Sunday...I know it's one of my favourite days of the week!!
I'm only hours away from my weekend!!

the MONEY MAN

I think the MONEY MAN (or woman, man just flows better) has been testing me this past month.

• Just after booking a trip to Cancun, Hurricane Wilma puts a damper on our vacation plans, but it takes over two weeks before the flight is cancelled and they actually agree to give us a refund rather than a credit. I mean who would really want a credit with an airline that flies mostly in the states when you live in good old Canada?

• OP gets sick, very sick. The initial rough estimate was about half of actual costs when you factor in all of his surgery, hospitalization and analysis. So now we have a $2100 cat, thank goodness we love him so much. And he really is so incredibly cute!

• After paying off my mechanic bill (for getting my brakes done last month) at the beginning of November, my car decided to act up again. After arriving home from a visit to a friends house I noticed a strong rubbery smell and smoke coming from my driver side front tire. After replacing the brake calipers, drive shaft and one CV axle, I'm in for another $350.

• J and I frequently browse the housing listings, looking for townhouses, as we know that eventually we will want to move. After seeing a flyer for a brand new townhouse unit in Surrey we decided to go on down and check it out. They were beautiful, three floors, three bedroom and den, three bathrooms (one of which is a private ensuite), approximately 1800 square feet and all for under $300,000. Unfortunately, although we would love to move somewhere new and beautiful, it would just about double our mortgage costs and we are presently lacking the funds to pay any more than we already are.
  
  
• Oh yeah and did I mention that Christmas and the Holiday Season are just around the corner?!! We have started Christmas shopping, but have yet to put a dent in the list of things we need to buy. And of course that list is purely theoretical, we have no idea what to buy for over half of the presents.

Money...Love it when you have it, hate it when you don't.

Vacation

About a week before hurricane Wilma decided to ravage the beaches of Mexico, J and I booked a trip to Cancun. We were planning on staying at a beautiful beachfront all inclusive resort. The only complaints travelers had about the resort was that the beach was slightly rocky, but the hotel accommodated that by allowing you to visit their sister hotel which had the pristine beach front. Personally I was not concerned, as I generally prefer the peace and quiet of the pool to being attacked by peddlers on the beach.

You would think there would be no question as to getting a refund after a natural disaster such as a hurricane, but that was not exactly the case. The hotel would be easy enough to cancel out of, but our plane tickets with Continental were going to be a problem. Continental kindly decided to waive all cancellation fees however, unless our flight was cancelled there was absolutely no possibility of a refund. We could have a credit, but we had already attempted to reschedule and fly elsewhere and it was far less than convenient. Seems that to go on a sun vacation we were going to need to spend the night overnight in the states somewhere because by the time we arrived in the states we would have missed the connecting flight.

Fortunately, after a few weeks of constant anger (instead of the desired excitement about vacation) the flight was cancelled and we are now awaiting our refund. It will take a few months (because doing something right away is definitely out of the questions) but we are happy that when the time comes to reschedule we will be able to start from square one again.

We have decided to postpone the big trip for another 6-8 months, weather and work depending. We have not however, cancelled the vacation altogether. Instead we are just going to take a couple days off work and head out to Galiano Island where we are going to rent a waterfront cabin, sit in a hot tub and relax.

I can't wait to get out into nature and have nothing to do but spend time with my man, read a book and relax. Our vacation is finally starting to come together.

God & the Canadian Government

I found this in my email inbox the other day...something to think about at the least!
a:)

---

So if the CANADIAN government determines that it is against
the law for the words "under God" to be on our money, then,
so be it.

And if that same government decides that the "Ten
Commandments" are not to be used in or on a government
installation, then, so be it.

And since they already have prohibited any prayer in the
schools, on which they deem their authority, then so be it.

I say, "so be it," because I would like to be a law abiding
Canadian citizen

I say, "so be it," because I would like to think that smarter
people than I are in positions to make good decisions.

I would like to think that those people have the Canadian
Public's best interests at heart.

BUT, YOU KNOW WHAT ELSE I'D LIKE?

Since we can't pray to God, can't Trust in God and cannot
post His Commandments in Government buildings, I don't
believe the Government and its employees should
participate in the Easter and Christmas... celebrations
which honor the God that our government is eliminating
from many facets of Canadian life.

I'd like my mail delivered on Christmas, Good Friday,
Thanksgiving & Easter. After all, it's just another day.

I'd like our Government to be in session on Christmas,
Good Friday,Thanksgiving & Easter as well as Sundays.
After all, it's just another day.

I'd like ALL Representatives to not have to worry about
getting home for the "Christmas Break." After all,
it's just another day.

I'm thinking that a lot of my taxpayer dollars could be saved,
if all government offices & services would work on Christmas,
Good Friday & Easter. It shouldn't cost any overtime since
those would be just like any other day of the week to a
government that is trying to be "politically correct."

In fact...

I think that our government should work on Sundays (initially
set aside for worshipping God...) because, after all, our
government says that it should be just another day....

What do you all think?

If this idea gets to enough people, maybe our elected
officials will stop giving in to the minority opinions and
begin, once again, to represent the majority" of ALL of
the people. SO BE IT...........

Halloween, OP and a visitor!

The last week feels as if it has been fairly busy, but perhaps its in my head. J and I managed to escape Halloween without having to don any silly costumes. We did however, head over to see his little nephews who were dressed as a Ninja and Zorro and were absolutely adorable. I didn't have to turn any kids away from the front door--which I definitely do if they are not dressed up--so overall I would say it was a successful Halloween. I also feel the need to point out that we DID NOT bring any Halloween candy into our home...kudos for us!

OP had his re-check at the vet on Tuesday and fortunately his wounds were looking good, so the doctors removed his stitches. Unfortunately, they also decided that we should give him another week of the pills I had JUST FINISHED giving him. So I'm still cramming pills down his throat three times a day and he is now fighting me on it with much more conviction; my hand has a few scratches from his attempts to bat my hand away, but of course now I just hold his paw down.

Seems Tuesday was a big day, as J's good friend K flew in from Mexico, arriving at the airport just after midnight. She has been living in Peurto Vallarta for about 4 years and has made the decision to give away her material goods and travel the world helping people to heal themselves from within. At her request we watched the movie "What the bleep do we know" which tries to tie together science and spirituality through the concepts of quantum physics. It was a very thought provoking movie, but I think I will need to watch it at least one more time before I form any conclusions of my own.

O.P. Update

OP's heart has been determined "high-normal" which basically means it is ok, although it is on the large side. But the plus is that for now, his heart is not enlarged, and he won't need super expensive pills every day to keep it functioning properly.

OP had his bladder stone surgery last Monday and ended up spending two nights in the hospital. I missed him dearly and went to visit and cuddle him each day. Because he is a fat cat, who hadn't been eating and the ultrasound had brought up some questions regarding the health of his liver, the vets took a piece of liver during the surgery for a biopsy. Unfortunately, this means that my poor baby ended up having an incision approximately four inches longer than he would have needed if they had only removed the stone. That's right, four inches, he was sliced from about his sternum all the way through his belly.

Turns out he doesn't have fatty liver syndrome, which is good, but he does have microshunts, which means that the blood and nutrients are not quite flowing at optimal levels. For now, apparently vitamin E should help keep them from getting worse.

Overall, OP is recovering well at home, although he is still being moderately picky about the food. He is not overly keen on the canned food I am supposed to feed him, but I can understand that as it was what they fed him at the hospital. Once his bladder stone is analyzed, the vet is going to contact the food company and discuss OP's particular issues and find the right diet for him. Hopefully it won't be too costly.

O.P. = Sick

I am sad to report, that my 4 year old baby, is not feeling all that well. Seems he has bladder stones which have been making him pee blood, and will require surgery for removal. In a female cat they can try and remedy the problem via diet, but in a male the crystals can create blockages which could potentially lead to death...So surgery it is. Under normal circumstances he would be getting an operation immediately, but since the stones are not life threatening and are not his major problem, surgery will have to wait.

Even more concerning is that my poor little OP has a heart rate of 246-248, and the ideal range is 120-160 with the max acceptable heart rate of about 180 in cats. So as you can imagine the poor guys heart is working overtime. They think it is likely myopathy which is a thickening of the heart muscles: since the heart chamber can no longer hold as much blood as normal, the heart starts working harder to pump more blood and thus elevates the heart rate.

The vet has given me some blood pressure pills for him to help thin the blood and hopefully bring the heart rate down, but they can't be sure what the problem is until he has an ultrasound. After the ultrasound they will hopefully be able to accurately determine what is wrong and medicate him. When his heart rate becomes more normal then it will be much safer to anethetize him for the bladder stone surgery.

Luckily, the vet classed OP as priority and I am taking him for the ultrasound tomorrow afternoon.

Kitties and Birthday's

So it's been a while, but I have been oodles of busy!

My mom turned 50 last week,so of course there was a need to buy a super fabulous present and having left it a little later than I wanted, I was worried I may not be able to find the present I wanted. But fortunately my brain kicked in and I got the best present ever.

Since my mom's cat Parker was hit by a car two years ago, my mom has been wanting a new cat, but as my mom had told me numerous times, "Daddy says no more pussies" and I had been unable to convince her to do it anyways. So risking the wrath of dad, I headed out to the SPCA where I found a beautiful black kitten with two small white patches on her neck and belly.

My mom was like a kid at Christmas as she scooped her out of the box, and although not entirely happy, my dad behaved himself and actually had the kitty in his arms within a few minutes. My mom immediately dubbed the little black ball of fur SPOOKY. She is very calm and placid, and definitely knows who the momma is, following her around and sleeping next to her on the couch.

Again since it was her 50th birthday, there was a need for a party. My dad organized a big surprise party on Saturday which went extremely well. Mom was happy and the place looked beautiful!

In the grand spirit of birthday's, my Dad turned 51 today and I am heading over there this evening for a dinner of--my favourite--roast beef!

The Way I See It #47

Wild salmon are the canaries in the coal mines of our own world.
-Bill Taylor
wild salmon advocate

Courtesy of my disposable (bad, bad, me) starbucks coffee cup today. My cup also tells me I can find more here!

Broken Brother

As you may or may not know my brother has always had a bit of a knack for getting hurt and being at the wrong place at the wrong time. It is almost inevitable that if someone is going to get hurt, it will be him. He plays hard, and when you play hard sometimes you fall hard.

Recently Ad has taken up yet another dangerous but ultimately fun hobby: riding motorcycles. He received his license with zero demerits, always gears up with safety equipment and tries to remain safe while still having fun.

Last weekend he took a trip to Princeton with a group of approximately 15 people. They had a fun and relaxing ride, followed by what sounded like a lovely lunch. About 20 minutes into the ride home, trouble hit. As Ad rounded the corner, he failed to see some debris and glass on the road and when his bike rode through it he lost traction and became friends with the ditch.

fortunately a very nice trucker offered to load his bike up on his empty truck and take it back to his home base in Abbotsford, which made it much easier to retrieve the bike a few days later. Since his entire party was riding motorcycles, getting back to the city would have been very difficult were not for another set of good samaritans who loaded them into their minivan and drove him to the Abby hospital.

Although his helmet would have you think otherwise, Ad is basically ok. He has a broken shoulder (scapula to be exact) and some bruising in his legs. But in my books walking away from a motorcycle crash on a curvy highway with only a broken shoulder is DAMN LUCKY!

His bike is a write-off and ICBC is going to give him money for his bike, helmet and lost wages until EI kicks in, so overall the situation really could have been much worse. I'm just happy he is ok.

Ear Candles

Ear candles are long, skinny, hollow, wax covered pieces of material that you place in your ear and light on fire. The heat from the flame creates a vacuum in your ear and sucks out most of the dirt, grime, debris and grossness that can be found within our ears. I had heard--from a fair amount of people--that ear candling was both effective and soothing.

The whole idea has piqued my interest for quite some time, but I never managed to get my hands on a pair until recently. I was in a little health shop on Davie and when I asked the clerk she scooped up a bucket from its hiding place and I had my first set of ear candles.

A little bit of internet research later, and I was ready to try out this new experience. A helper is necessary for ear candling, so J and I decided to use one candle each and split it between both ears. I imagine the experience would have been better if we had used a whole candle per ear, perhaps next time.

As for the experience itself, it was very soothing to hear the crackle of the flame and feel the warmth of the fire within my ear. I'm certain that the calming presence of someone you love watching over you, keeping you safe from the flame made all the difference in the world.

Although pleasing, the sensations were mild, quite different than I had expected. Overall, I enjoyed the experience and found that although not significantly improved, my hearing seemed crisper, clearer, more pure if you will. I will definitely try again, and recommend ear candles to those whose interest is now piqued.

African Hand Drumming

I started taking African Hand Drumming classes at Brittannia Community Centre about a year ago. The drum I play is called the Djembe and involves three basic tones, the bass, the slap and the open tone. Learning simple beats and developing your tones and handing is the basis for the level one class. I am now taking the level two class (which I have already taken) where we learn harder beats, with multiple parts including the dununs (which you can see a picture of if you link through the drumming site).

As many of you may know, coordination and musical ability aren't exactly my strongest traits, which is why I choose Djembe in the first place. I figured if I could play a musical instrument at all, it would certainly be a simple one such as banging a drum with your hands.

After a summer hiatus, I went back to class last night. I often have difficulty learning a beat in class, as I get lost in the sounds of the people around me and it is difficult for me to find my own beat. So I merely try to remember the basics and practice at home for the next week. Fortunately, this week we started with my favourite beat called Yankadi. It is a little bit complex (although still slow), but I had learned it previously which made my return to drumming a little bit less intimidating.

I also tried the dununs for the first time, they are round drums that are played horizontally using drum sticks. A simple beat is played using your weak hand on a piece of 2x4 wood placed on top of the drum, then your strong hand is used to hit the head of the drum on certain beats. This results in an amazing sound of deep drum beats and simple clicking or almost pinging sounds of the drumstick on the wood.

When it was finally time to try the dununs, my first instinct was to mirror Russell (the teacher). Which of course resulted in me using the wrong hands for each part the first two times, and thus I pretty much sucked. But once I figured out I was doing it wrong and started using the proper hands I got much better (I guess it does affect the coordination). Although scary, the dunun was also very fun, and it sounds amazing when you get all three dununs parts and both djembe parts playing at the same time. It's a beautiful melody, and during one round, Russell played about 8 solo pieces over all of the other parts, it was absolutely amazing.

I can't wait for next week, so I can learn something new.

T.G.I.S.

Thank Goodness it's Sunday
It doesn't have the same ring to if as TGIF, but the meaning is definitley the same. This week has felt very busy and stressful and I have been looking forward to my weekend immensley. There's not too much planned for monday or tuesday which means a big sleep-in is definitley in my immediate future, and who couldn't use a little extra sleep?!

I'm hoping to start the weekend off with a relaxing sunday evening with my man. Hopefully it will involve some take-out (I'm rooting for chinese, but then again I nearly always choose chinese) and some quality tv.

I realized last week that Sunday is a prime time to veg in front of the tv. Not only do I lack the motivation for much else at the end of the week, but the TV shows don't totally blow. Fox manages to entertain me for a full two hours with The Simpsons, Some new show (I can't remember what it was called, but it was funny), Family guy and American Dad.

Well, I think it's time to get started on that relaxation thing...

Cardio Kick Box

I've been feeling lazy, lethargic and generally inactive for the majority of the summer. YES, I played softball, but we all know that it doesn't really require a ton of physical activity. I mean you get a break in between running each base (thank goodness)!

Prior to summer I began attending a cardio kick boxing class, but unfortunately fell off track during the busy months of summer. I am however, ready to get back into exercise mode and I actually just got home from class now, and boy am I sweaty!!

what's great about this class is that we spend the first part of class doing aerobic type activity, punching, kicking and generally moving around the room. Then it's time for my favourite part of class, the punching bag. We use wave masters, which sit on a water based stand rather than hanging from the ceiling. We wear boxing gloves and wraps and we beat the crap out of the bag with punches, and a multitude of kicks such as round kicks and front kicks. Finally, the last part of class we call torture, this is when we sit on the ground and do mat exercise (generally a variety of pushups and sit ups) before stretching and going home. As much as torture sucks, we all know we need it, and it somehow seems more tolerable when there are other people around.

And all of this costs only $4 per 1.5 hour session once you buy the gloves. It feels so good to exercise, although it may hurt like hell tomorrow...

mini-vacation

For our labour day long weekend Jason and I headed out to whistler; we stayed in a beautiful condo in the creekside courtesy of my parents timeshare. The place included a master bedroom and living room with a mountain view, two other small windowless bedrooms (which were perfect for napping), two bathrooms, a full kitchen with a dishwasher, a washer drier, TV, VCR, BBQ and fireplace. It was absolutely
spectacular.

While in Whistler, we didn't do much except relax and try to veg out from our busy lives. We slept in late, made bacon and eggs for breakfast then headed off to the village to stroll the shops. We had hoped to ride the gondola up the mountain, but unfortunately it didn't work out. At first I forgot the camera, then by the time we made it back the gondola rides were coming to a close and we didn't want to be rushed at the top. And on Wednesday morning, it was cloudy, so unfortunately no gondola this trip.








Fortunately, we did however find time to make use of our fabulous accommodations. Rather than go out for lunch, we opted to feast at home. I had a beautiful ahi tuna steak and Jason had an amazing piece of ribeye steak and we completed the meal with some macaroni salad and a cesar salad.

Overall, this was a fabulous trip, very low key and relaxing and I can't wait to do it again. These picture were all taken off of our patio in the suite, what an amazing view.

last nights lesson

Courtesy of "the Simpsons":

Handsome means he spends all day looking in the mirror. Rugged means you look at him.

my job

Last November I started my job as an environmental biologist/lab technician. What does that mean exactly you ask? In short, I test water. But here's a more convoluted response to my occupation.

Any company that has effluent (waste water) that is going to be released into a water body (i.e. river or ocean) is required--by the government--to test the effluent to ensure that it is not toxic to the level of harming the ecosystem, or the organisms within the system. That is where we come in.

We test the water on both rainbow trout and Daphnia magma (water fleas) to determine the lethal concentration for 50% of the organisms in the test (LC50) or the lethal time for 50% of the organisms in the test (LT50). Once these values are determined, the test either passes or fails based on guidelines presented by the government. A failure results in repeated testing, and in extreme cases closure of the company until the situation is remedied.

You will all be happy to know, that failures are few and far between so although the water often looks nasty, it is not nearly as toxic as we might imagine.

Big Box Rant

One Happy Big-Box Wasteland Oh my yes, there is indeed one force that is eating away the American soul like a cancer
By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist

Do you want to feel like you might as well be in Tucson or Boise or Modesto or Wichita or Muncie and it no longer freakin' matters, because we as a nation have lost all sense of community and place? Why, just pull over, baby. Take the next exit. Right here, this very one.

Ah, there it is, yet another massive big-box mega-strip mall, a giant beacon of glorious community decay, a wilted exclamation point of consumerism gone wild. This is America. You have arrived. You are home. Eat it and smile.

There is the Target. There is the Wal-Mart and there is the Home Depot and the Kmart, the Borders and the Staples and the Sam's Club and the Office Depot and the Costco and the Toys "R" Us and of course the mandatory Container Store so you may buy more enormous plastic tubs in which to dump all your new sweatshop-made crap.

What else do you need? Ah yes, food. Or something vaguely approximating it. There is the Wendy's and the Burger King and the Taco Bell/KFC hybrid (ewww) and there is the Mickey D's and the Subway and the Starbucks and the dozen other garbage-food fiends lined up down the road like toxic dominoes, all lying in wait to maul your arteries and poison your heart and make you think about hospitals.

And here's the beautiful part: This snapshot, it's the same as it was 10 miles back, same as it will be 10 miles ahead, the exact same massive cluster of insidious development as you will find in roughly 10,000 noncommunities around the nation and each and every one making you feel about as connected to the town you're in and the body you inhabit as a fish feels on Saturn. In the dark. In a hole. Dead.

You have seen the plague. I have seen the plague. Anyone over 30 has seen the plague evolve from a mere germ of disease in the late '80s to a full-blown pestilence of big-box shopping hell. I was recently up in northern Idaho, where my family has owned a beautiful house on a lake in a tiny burg near the Canadian border for 40 years, and to get to this region you must pass through the explosively grown resort town of Coeur d'Alene, and the plague is there perhaps worse than anywhere within a 75-mile radius.

I am officially old enough to remember when passing through Coeur d'Alene meant stopping at exactly one -- one -- traffic light on Highway 95 on the way north, surrounded by roughly one million pine trees and breathtaking mountain vistas and vast, calming open spaces, farms and fields and sawmills and funky roadside shops and gorgeous lakes for miles.

There are now about 20 traffic lights added in as many years, scattered down a 10-mile stretch of highway and each and every one demarcates a turnoff into a massive low-lying horribly designed strip mall, tacky and cheaply built and utterly heartless, and clearly zero planning went into any of these megashops, except to space them so obnoxiously that you have to get back in your goddamn car to drive the eighth of a mile to get to the Target to the Best Buy to the Wal-Mart to the Super Foods and back to your freakin' sanity.

Do you want to know what depresses the American spirit? Do you want to know why it feels like the center cannot hold and the tyranny of mediocrity has been loosed upon our world? Do you want to know what instills more thoughts of suicide and creates a desperate, low-level rage the source of which we cannot quite identify but which we know is right under our noses and which we now inhale Prozac and Xanax and Paxil by the truckload to attempt to mollify?

I have your answer. Here it is. Look. It is the appalling spread of big-box strip malls, tract homes like a cancer, metadevelopments paving over the American landscape, all creating a bizarre sense of copious loss, empty excess, heartless glut, forcing us to ask, once again, the Great All-American Question: How can we have so damned much but still feel like we have almost nothing at all?

Oh and by the way, Coeur d'Alene has a distinct central portion of town, well off the toxic highway. It is calm and tree lined and emptily pretty and it is packed with, well, restaurants and art galleries. And real estate offices. For yuppies. Because, of course, there are no local shops left. No mom-and-pops, few unique small businesses of any kind. No charm. No real community per se. Just well-manicured food and mediocre art no true local can actually afford and business parks where the heart used to be.

I have little real clue as to what children growing up in this sort of bizarre megaconsumerist dystopia will face as they age, what sort of warped perspective and decimated sense of place and community and home. But if you think meth addiction and teen pregnancy and wicked religious homogeny and a frightening addiction to blowing s-- up in violent video games isn't a direct reaction to it, you're not paying close enough attention.

This is the new America. Our crazed sense of entitlement, our nearly rabid desire for easy access to mountains of bargain-basement junk has led to the upsurge of soulless big-box shops which has, in turn, led to a deadly sense of prefabricated, vacuous sameness wherever we go. And here's the kicker: We think it's good. We think it helps, brings jobs, tax money, affordable goods. We call it progress. We call it choice. It is the exact opposite.

Result No. 1: Towns no longer have personality, individuality, heart. Community drags. Environment suffers. Our once diverse and quirky and idiosyncratic landscape becomes ugly and bland and vacuous and cheap.

Result No. 2: a false sense of safety, of comfort, wrought of empty sameness. We want all our goods to be antiseptic and sanitized and brightly lit and clean. In a nation that has lost all sense of direction and all sense of pride and whose dollar is a global joke and whose economy is running on fumes and whose goods are all made overseas and whose incompetent warmongering leader makes the world gag, that toxic sameness is, paradoxically, reassuring.

Result No. 3: We are trained, once again, to fear the different, the Other, That Which Does Not Conform. We learn to dislike the unique, the foreign, foreigners. We lose any sense of personal connection to what we create and what we buy and I do not care how cheap that jute rug from Ikea was: When they are mass-produced in 100,000 chunks in a factory in Malaysia, it ain't quirky.

Sameness is in. Sameness is the new black. It is no different than preplanned Disney World vacations or organized religion or preplanned cruises or themed restaurants where all edges have been filed off and every experience has been predigested and sanitized for your protection because God forbid you have an authentic experience or nurture genuine individual perspective or dare to question the bland norm lest your poor addled soul shudder and recoil and the Powers That Be look at you as a serious threat.

I have seen the plague and so have you. Hell, you're probably shopping in it. After all, what choice do you have?

welcome

Welcome to the first post of "days with amber". I have created this blog as I am beginning to realize that I am losing touch with a number of my friends and family. Unfortunately, this is due to pure laziness and a lack of enough hours in the day.

I am constantly busy and often tired at the end of the day, and I certainly don't send out enough email updates to keep the people that I love in close contact. Hopefully, if I manage to keep this blog updated regularly, when YOU have some extra time you can peruse and know what is going on with me.

A worthwhile goal I know, but we will see how the reality of the situation turns out!

Happy reading, I miss you all!
amber:)