Backin' Up

My friend Katie posted this link a few days ago, but I just had to share it here.  Trust me--you're gonna love it!

Happy Birthday Mom

You would have been 64 today.  I remember a time when I thought 64 was "old"--now it represents a life cut short unfairly by an illness that has targeted too many of our friends and family.  As I write these words, your daughter-in-law's brother is barely clinging to life, the tumour in his head robbing him of him of himself, his sister of a brother, his parents of a son, his nieces of an uncle.

I miss you.  I knew I would and I'm not even surprised by the intensity, but living it is harder than I thought it would be.  I still listen to that voice message you left for me--I feel so lucky to have that connection, to be able to hear your distinctive voice so strong and happy.  I was worried I would forget--forget your face, your hugs, your laugh--but I can remember you so clearly it's like I just saw you yesterday.  But you've been gone 10 months now, and in some ways you've been gone even longer than that.

Happy Birthday, Mom.  Today I celebrate your memory and your legacy.  I celebrate your strength of character and strength of spirit.  I celebrate all that I have learned from you and all that you still have to teach me.

Today, I celebrate you.

On the Bright Side, I'm Feeling Much Better

The good news is my car is ready and I can pick it up tomorrow morning which means I can head up north to visit family for Thanksgiving like I'd planned.

The bad news is it cost $1438.12 to fix it.

Well, at least I have friends willing to fight over my pancreas...that's something to be thankful for...right?

F**k My Life

So, I came down with a nasty cold a week ago and it's still lingering and absolutely refuses to depart.  Now I'm at the coughing-up-my-pancreas stage and it's rather painful and fully annoying.  I've decimated the better part of 4 boxes of "Puffs Plus with lotion" and I've single-handedly ensured stock holders in whatever company makes "Halls" get a nice dividend this year.  Not to mention passing the virus on to countless hapless individuals with whom I've come into contact over the last several days.  You're welcome.

And the cherry on top of the sundae?  The clutch went on the car today.

I've always suspected the clutch was on its last legs but I've had more than one mechanic assure me it looked fine.  Clearly that was not the case.  As I type this, my car is sitting in the parking lot at my place of work, unable to budge without assistance from what will assuredly be a very expensive tow truck.  A tow truck I'm going to have to call tomorrow morning to come pick it up and take it to a mechanic who will hold it ransom until I pay up.  And pay I will.  Dearly.

Anyone want to buy a kidney?

30 Days of Truth (aka Too Much Information)

There's a blogging meme that's been circulating around teh Internets recently and one of my favourite bloggers brought it to my attention.  It's 30 days of writing prompts that lay your soul bare for your audience, so I'm thinking it's pretty safe to do since my readership is miniscule and more or less knows me better than I know myself anyway.


So, here's the list--feel free to co-opt this idea yourself since many other bloggers have already done it so it's not like I'm being original here.


Day 01 → Something you hate about yourself.
Day 02 → Something you love about yourself.
Day 03 → Something you have to forgive yourself for.
Day 04 → Something you have to forgive someone for.
Day 05 → Something you hope to do in your life.
Day 06 → Something you hope you never have to do.
Day 07 → Someone who has made your life worth living for.
Day 08 → Someone who made your life hell, or treated you like shit.
Day 09 → Someone you didn’t want to let go, but just drifted.
Day 10 → Someone you need to let go, or wish you didn’t know.
Day 11 → Something people seem to compliment you the most on.
Day 12 → Something you never get compliments on.
Day 13 → A band or artist that has gotten you through some tough ass days. (write a letter.)
Day 14 → A hero that has let you down. (letter)
Day 15 → Something or someone you couldn’t live without, because you’ve tried living without it.
Day 16 → Someone or something you definitely could live without.
Day 17 → A book you’ve read that changed your views on something.
Day 18 → Your views on gay marriage.
Day 19 → What do you think of religion? Or what do you think of politics?
Day 20 → Your views on drugs and alcohol.
Day 21 → (scenario) Your best friend is in a car accident and you two got into a fight an hour before. What do you do?
Day 22 → Something you wish you hadn’t done in your life.
Day 23 → Something you wish you had done in your life.
Day 24 → Make a playlist to someone, and explain why you chose all the songs. (Just post the titles and artists and letter)
Day 25 → The reason you believe you’re still alive today.
Day 26 → Have you ever thought about giving up on life? If so, when and why?
Day 27 → What’s the best thing going for you right now?
Day 28 → What if you were pregnant or got someone pregnant, what would you do?
Day 29 → Something you hope to change about yourself. And why.
Day 30 → A letter to yourself, tell yourself EVERYTHING you love about yourself


So, starting with Day 1--and for the record, don't expect a post every single day for the next 30 'cause that's just not how I roll--here's something I hate about myself:  I hate my desperate and pathetic need to be the centre of attention.  I like to think I'm a confident person who likes who she is and believes in herself, but my perverse need for attention stands in stark contrast to that perception.  I try very hard to be less of an attention-whore, but I just don't have as much fun socially if I'm not dominating the conversation or having all around me hang on every word of my fascinating stories  Fortunately I'm blessed to have friends who don't seem to care and love me anyway even though I hog the spotlight, but I still feel like a dick the next day when I realize how much of a jerk I was.  I really beat myself up over this but I can't seem to stop.


Well, that was fun!  Let's hope Day 2 can keep this momentum going!

More Pics!

I posted another batch of pics from Cali over at my photoblog.  These ones were taken in Santa Cruz on the wine tour.

California Pics Round One

Alright, hop on over to my photoblog and check out the first batch of pictures...which is actually the last batch I took but screw chronology.

Here's a couple to whet your whistle.