New Glasses

After waiting impatiently I got to go pick them up today. I like them, a fair bit. I find that the new prescription definitely makes everything a bit sharper, but as with any new glasses prescription I feel a little like I am walking down a hill all the time. I am sure my eyes will adjust soon enough. I also think the thicker arms on these will take some getting used to.

I also got my new sunglasses. When I first tried them on in the store, I thought, are they really me? They are a little trendy, a little bigger than I would have chosen. However after wearing them for about a minute I decided that I really liked them. I also appreciate being able to see clearly when I am driving. For the last couple of years, when I wear sunglasses to drive, my vision was not all that clear because my sunglasses were just cheap ones. I look forward to using these for the next few years. They are Marilyn Monroe brand, and even have a little 'M' with a circle of little diamonds around it on the arms. Pretty swanky!

Sweet Poochie

Our latest addition

My parents and I spent a few hours last night putting it together. It was pretty easy, just took some time to get it put together. I look forward to putting things in it :)

So I was thinking. If I get my new fancy sunglasses and a new fancy bikini. I might have to get Jay to take a picture of me to post on here. Or maybe not...... haha

Optometrists and Glasses

I like going to see the optometrist. Even if I do find out that my eyes have gotten weaker, I think that there is nothing painful about going to the optometrist. The dentist on the other hand...

When I was a young child (age 2) I was referred to a ophthalmologist because my left eye would turn cross eyed when I didn't have glasses on, also I was incredibly far sighted. My parents said that as a kid I would look across a room, see a toy, then when I went to retrieve the toy I would have a hard time actually seeing it to pick it up. I was put into bifocals at the age of two. I wore bifocals until grade three when I was in a car accident. While I was admitted to RUH they got me an appointment with my specialist who checked my eyes and said I no longer needed the bifocals and therefore could start seeing my regular optometrist. At the time I was disappointed because I enjoyed going to see Dr. Romanchuk, as I got to watch cartoons and wear funny glasses and look at fun pictures. By the time I was 12 I no longer needed glasses at all, until about four years ago when I was told it might help to get some glasses to clear up my vision.

Our family has gone to see Dr. Robinson at the Midtown Tower for as long as I can remember. He is a very nice, personable doctor. I was in to see him yesterday and they took me in to do my pretesting right at my scheduled appointment time, then he came in to see me in the exam room within two or three minutes of me being put in there. He told me how healthy my eyes are, but that they are a little weaker than they were two years ago when I had my last checkup. I think he has had the same gold pen for the last 20 years, when he gets me to follow the pen with my eyes to make sure they can follow things properly. He asked if I wanted to get new glasses, or just stick with my old ones for now. I decided I would like to look at new ones. He took me over to their dispensary right away and I was helped by a super friendly lady. I tried on about 25 pairs and we finally narrowed it down to two that we both liked the best. I was not wanting to buy right now, so I asked her to make note of them on my file and that I would do some shopping around and possibly be back. When I was leaving the Midtown I poked my head into Pearle Vision who was having a buy one get one free sale. After looking in there for two minutes, I got the impression that I would have a hard time finding one pair that I liked, let alone two!

Today I decided to check out Vogue Optical. I was more optimistic about their selection when I went in there. They also do the two for the price of one deal all the time. I like that. I think I would consider getting prescription sunglasses so that I can drive with sunglasses on and still see as well as I would like to. I tried on a number of frames and found some regular glasses frames that I didn't mind. I also tried on some potential sunglasses frames. I have a wide bridge on my nose and do not often find that plastic frames without nose pads fit on my nose very well. The lady who was helping me grabbed what I would consider to be some trendier frames. They were bigger than what I would have chosen for myself and they did not have the nose pads. I tried on a couple of pairs that were like "ew, no way!" but then she gave me this one pair. I think that they fit my nose quite well and I liked them, quite a bit. Even though they were very different than something I would have chose for myself they were really cool. I think with sunglasses it would be nice to have better overall coverage and I think I can understand some of these vintage inspired big sunglasses that you see people wearing these days.

One of these days I hope to take Jason there with me to get a second opinion and maybe go ahead and order something. I can be indecisive at times and find it's not a bad idea to have a second opinion. I found the sales lady at Vogue Optical to be fairly helpful, but she could have been more friendly and given more feedback. I really appreciated the lady at the dispensary at the optometrists office. She had a lot of feedback for me and was very helpful in deciding what looked good and what didn't. The Vogue Optical lady picked out quite a few frames, but also thought that most of them looked good, which I didn't necessarily agree with. The lady at the dispensary would say, you know, that one doesn't really suit you. Maybe I'll check out Vogue Optical downtown to see if there is someone friendlier there.

I thought I loved the rain

I was so happy to see it pour rain today. This is our first day of rain since last year I think. We have had bits of rain, and cloudy days, but no days of nearly nonstop rain. I was so happy to sit inside and watch it pour and see how extra green all my shrubs were looking. At one point the dog asked to go out for a pee. She is not too keen on going out by herself in the rain, so I told her she would have until the rain slowed down a bit. At this point it was raining sheets and I could hardly see the house behind ours through the rain. Finally it did slow down so I took her out.

For some odd reason I decided to look beside our house, I don't usually when I take the dog out. The first thing I noticed was that our window well was at least half or more full of water. Crap. So I took the dog for a pee, then came back inside and trudged down to the basement. The bedroom, who's window is in that window well, carpet was soaked about half way across the room (and under the wall into the adjoining room). Crap. I looked up and water was at least half way up the window. Unfortunately windows are not water tight. Crap. So I went and told Jay who was laying down for a rest. Then I headed outside to start bailing water. I probably pulled at least 10 or 12 buckets of water out of the window well before it was only about an inch or inch and a half full and I was confident it would drain the rest out on it's own. Then I went downstairs and got the shop vac and realized the only attachment we have for it is a one inch pipe. So I set do vacuuming half of the bedroom (thankfully there is no bed in that room, just boxes and a few chairs).

I decided to call mom and dad to see if they had either another shop vac, or better attachments and dad figured he did, so they came over to help. We took turns vacuuming, though mom did a good portion of it. When I had gone out to bail the water I determined that a good part of the problem with why there was so much water in the window well was the fact that there is a downspout a couple of feet away from the window well, and it had rained so much, so fast that all the water ran down into the window well. There is also a problem with the grade of the lot right there. The window well is the low point. I am hoping that when we finally get a chance to talk to the landscapers that they will be willing to fix that.

While mom was vacuuming, dad and I ran over to Home Depot before they closed to get an extension hose for the downspout. We found one that works well enough, but it wasn't quite as long as I was hoping we might find. Dad went out there during the last downpour though, to see if the water was draining the right way, and he said it appears to be. However with the poor grade near the window well, when we get a huge downpour that the eaves cannot handle, if the water runs over it will run down into the window well. I hope that we will not get too many downpours of that level before we can get the grade sorted out.

All that I have to say was that I felt tired before this all started. Now I feel physically tired from the vacuuming and bailing water. I feel emotionally tired from being frustrated/upset about this whole thing. I think that I will sleep well tonight. Well unless it rains hard, then I will be paranoid all night that the basement is filling with water.

Guacamole

I have tried guacamole a few times in my life. Up until recently though I wondered what everyone was so excited about. I thought it was bland and pretty much gross. Last week avocados were on sale so we picked up a bag of five. Jay decided to use three right away to mix up as guacamole. I think all that went into the first batch was avocado, red onion, lemon juice and some Epicure guacamole seasoning. It was quite good but I decided it needed some more things next time.

I looked at a few recipes online and found one that called for some sour cream, as well as lime juice and cilantro. I tried making more with the last two avocados and wow was it good! I added onion, cilantro, fat free plain yogurt (we didn't have sour cream on hand), avocado, lime juice, hot chili flakes and the Epicure seasoning. Mmmmm so good. I finally understand what all the excitment is about. I think I need to ration it, because I have read that avocado is full of fibre and is high in fat. Even though it is the good fat, sometimes it can upset a person's stomach. I will definitely be making that again!!!

Bikini

I still have not bought one. I would like to take my time and find a good one. I tend to be cheap, but I know when it comes to some things, it is best not to cheap out. Today I was at the Midtown Plaza and poked my head into Swimwear Etc. The first tag I looked at was for a pair of plain black bottoms, it said $70. I left. I just don't think I could ever justify spending $150 or more for a bathing suit. I can understand if you are a competitive swimmer, or maybe if you have a really odd body shape that is hard to fit. I would spend good money on a well fitting bathing suit. Me on the other hand, I have a pretty easy to fit body. I tend to be a little long in the torso, definitely heavier on the bottom half than the top half. Makes it nice to have a tankini or possibly a bikini. You don't have to worry about the suit being long enough, and you can buy the tops and bottoms separately so they actually fit your body.

Today at the Midtown I went into the Bay and decided to just try on a whole bunch of different styles of tops and bottoms for bikinis. I tried on some boy cut bottoms (at the suggestion of Jessica) and I would say I didn't mind them. You definitely need to make sure they are the right size (which I suppose goes for any bathing suit) because I tried on one that was a little too small and it was incredibly unflattering. However I tried on a different pair that fit a little differently and I liked them. Good coverage with those. I also find with my hips being a bit wider that a lot of the panty style bottoms tend to be too narrow to cover my butt in a way that I find flattering. So if I went that route I would need to find something with good butt coverage. Or I could just get some board shorts and don't worry so much about the bikini bottoms.

I find the tops to be a little easier for me with my small upper half. I have tried on halter type ones before and I generally like them. I have noticed a LOT of string type tops this year and thought I would try one of those. I didn't like it at all. A little too naked for me, plus the cups/triangles kept sliding to the side and I would hate to lose it all together. A pleasant surprise for me was a tube style top. I didn't think I would like it at all, and I found it to be quite flattering. It was a tube with a string that comes up and ties around the neck from the middle of the top. I wouldn't rule that out.

I tried on one complete suit today that I liked a fair bit. It had boy cut bottoms and a halter style top that tied at the back of the neck. I felt that it was fairly flattering and fit quite well. For both pieces it was $55. It had a pretty colourful print on it, but the background colour of it was white. I am always a little leary when it comes to white bathing suits. I think it had a fairly good lining in it, but for $55 I would hate to find out too late that it's see through. I didn't buy it. After supper I told Jay that I would like him to come shopping with me sometime. Give me a second opinion. I think that he could be honest with me without hurting my feelings.

I was disappointed to hear that Lac Pelletier is not very good for swimming in this year. Sounds like there is a lot of algae and weeds :( My mother-in-law said it looks like Kermit the Frog pooped in the lake. Haha, that made me laugh. So if I don't get too many chances to go swimming this summer, I feel that this would be the time to look for bathing suit/s for our possible trip this winter. I'm not sure how many are out in December or January.

Craving

I have been thinking a lot today about baked oatmeal. The kind they used to (or maybe still do?) make at Camp Kadesh. If anyone has that recipe, or one similar I would love to have it passed on to me. Well, maybe one that makes a 8X8 or 9X13 pan instead of feeding 200+ people.

Mmmm warm

I am so glad it has been so warm outside for the last few days. I know some might say it's too warm, but after the cold winter and spring we have had up to this point, I would take a week of +40C with a minimal amount of complaining. As long as I have a cool refuge and didn't have to spend every waking moment outside.

I am not sure what twigged in my brain. Maybe it was the cold spring we were having.....not sure. But recently I have revived my desire to go on a hot holiday next winter. I know next winter may seem like a long ways away, since it is only June and we have just had our first taste of summer weather. But I have learned that summer disappears quickly around here and winter comes and drags and drags and drags.

This past winter when Jay and I started toying with the idea of a hot holiday next winter to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary, I did some online research about wheelchair accessible travel. Since so many people who use wheelchairs have completely different levels of ability, it was important to me to find a travel agent who had a fair bit of experience in booking travel for people in wheelchairs. I saw an ad in one of the Total Access magazines that Jay gets as part of his Canadian Paraplegic Association membership each year. The ad was for a company called World on Wheelz, and it claimed to specialize in planning trips for wheelchair users and others with difficulty walking. I checked out their website and I have to say I was impressed.

The man who operates the website is a C4 quadriplegic who uses a power wheelchair. He had a passion for travel and after having some disappointing experiences himself, he decided he wanted to help other disabled people to have the best trips they could. He became a travel agent. He has traveled a lot in his life and on the website has posted numerous travel reviews from the trips he has been on. I have emailed back and forth with him a couple of times and he is very friendly, helpful and has returned my emails within 12 hours of receiving them. A week or two ago I sent an email to Expedia Cruise Ship Centre's website and am still waiting to hear back from them.

I know that both Jay and I still have some reservations about traveling abroad. What if they lost Jay's chair? I know it sounds like it's almost impossible, but we know someone that happened to. That would probably be about the worst thing that could happen. Lost luggage, well you can buy new clothes, and toiletries.....a wheelchair on the other hand not so much. I also asked James about the possibility of renting a shower wheelchair for Jay. That was one of those logistical things that was on my mind. I would hate for Jay to not be able to have a proper shower for an entire week. James responded and said the ones you can rent usually are quite useless, however he always takes his own shower chair along with him when he travels. That seems pretty crazy. I wonder if you have to pay extra to check that at the airport? That could be awfully cumbersome to take along, but would definitely be worth it. It could be a luggage cart :)

I have given it a tremendous amount of thought and feel that you can't just stay home in the off chance that something bad might happen. But I also think that if they lose Jay's wheelchair that we will never go anywhere again. Haha.....he can say 'I told you so.' and I will never ask to go anywhere ever again. On the other hand, maybe it will be an amazing time with NO problems whatsoever. Or more realistically there may be a few hiccups but it would be an overall amazing trip.

When I contacted James from World on Wheelz he suggested that January or February would be a good time to do a southern Caribbean cruise. He said if you want heat and sunshine, that is the place to go. The itinerary that I have been interested in is a seven night cruise starting in San Juan, Puerto Rico with stops at Aruba, Curacao, Dominica and St. Thomas. All of those ports are ones where the ship can pull right into the port and not have to dock at sea and use smaller boats for people to get on shore. Often wheelchairs are unable to go on the small boats, so you are stuck at the ship for those days. James also said that all four of the ports on the itinerary I was looking at have wheelchair accessible tours that can be booked, to give you a chance to go for a ride around the island and see some of the highlights. We were thinking it would be awesome to take some friends along with us. Just to hang out with, and maybe if not everyone wants to participate in every activity, someone could go do something else. But I am not sure that there are any of our friends who are in the position where they could take off for a week. If you are a friend, and reading this and are feeling interested in going, definitely let us know. I think having someone to go with would also help alleviate some of our anxieties.

I have learned my lesson

It was +28C here today! It was lovely. We decided, when we heard it was going to be so warm today, that we should go to the Forestry Farm. We hadn't been to the zoo in ages and thought it would be a good outing. I don't think I mentioned that when I tried on that bikini yesterday, I also tried on a tube top. I was thinking it might be nice to have one so I could maybe get a tan without the tan lines. I found one that fit reasonably well and bought it. My test for whether it fits is whether there is fat rolling over the top. I passed that test, and it stayed up! Today I wore it to the zoo. I slathered on the sunscreen and I didn't get a burn!

I have learned my lesson about sun exposure with my fair skin. I think I will wear it quite a bit this summer, and maybe keep my eyes open for another one. When I was browsing the mall last evening I went into Garage (I usually call it Garbage) clothing. I couldn't believe the junk that they try to sell. I had a quick browse, but I saw a cute strapless top that I liked enough to try on. It fit and was cute, but I was not willing to pay $24 for a shirt from Garbage Clothing. Maybe I will keep an eye out for an end of season sale. Though who wants to buy a tube top in August or September?

I think I probably spent at least three hours outside today and did not burn :) A good portion was spent sitting in the shade on our back deck, but the Forestry Farm was nice and sunny. Have they always had grizzly bears? I definitely did not remember them. They were quite active, swimming in their pool and playing with each other. The lions were also neat, but were very sleepy since it was so warm out. I was saying to Jason that they must finally feel at home. I don't think African lions are used to frost....

Know what I find annoying? Stores that don't have mirrors in the change rooms. There are times that I try something on, and feel self conscious about it. I don't want to parade around in front of other people. Tonight I went to a certain store. I found some shorts and some tops to try on. I thought, hey, just for the fun of it I am going to try on a bikini. I did not realize that there weren't mirrors in the change rooms. I tried it on, but was unable to see how it looked because I refused to leave the change room. I think all of parts of me that should have been covered were, but this is a store that sells both men's and women's clothes and I was not about to risk some guy seeing me in an ill fitting bikini with socks on.

I wonder if that is any indication that I am not meant to wear a bikini. I think I could probably get away with wearing one, but I just don't think I have the self confidence to strut around in public in something that covers as much, or maybe even a little less than my underwear does. I do believe I would be able to wear one if we ever went on a hot holiday....since I don't know anyone where I am going.....but pretty much the only place I ever wear a bathing suit anymore is at the lake, and I don't want to parade around down there in a bikini.

Our conversation during dish washing after supper...

Jay: These egg noodles sure smell like farts.

Angie (looking sheepish): No that was me.

Can't sleep, clown will eat me...

When I was a kid I had my fair share of bad dreams. My most common scary dreams included Freddy Kreuger, tornadoes and the clown from the movie It. I had a lot of fears about boogie men under my bed, and was scared to get up to go to the bathroom at night because something might get me. Not sure exactly where all this fear came from.

I can't remember the last time I had a scary dream. I usually have stupid dreams, ones that make me laugh or feel dumb. Except every now and again I will have a dream about work....that I slept in, or missed an appointment, and I feel awful.

Anyway, last night I had a dream about a clown. At the start of the dream I was walking in my parents neighbourhood, where I grew up. All of a sudden I heard a voice, it sounded like it was over a bullhorn or something. A very creepy voice that said something to the effect of, "I am going to get you Will." Will is my 3 year old nephew. I started running to see where Will was, and where this evil sounding voice came from. I rounded a corner and saw this evil clown. Will was nowhere in sight. I think the clown was trying to lure me in. I felt a lot of fear when I saw the clown but went over and asked where Will was, what he had done with him. He said soemthing about just wanting to get me. So I tried to run away, but he caught up to me. After I realized I couldn't outrun him, I decided to try to defend myself. We ended up in a fist fight, and I beat him up pretty good. I don't remember exactly what happened after that. But somehow the police became involved. I went down the police station to share my side of the story. When I got there the clown had taken off the makeup and costume and was actually a woman. I told my side of the story, and she told hers. The police didn't believe me, and believed her.......after that I don't remember much, but it was a really disturbing upsetting dream. I woke up at about 5:30am from the dream and didn't think I would get back to sleep. But I did, thankfully.

I have never cared for clowns. Always thought they were creepy. Now I like them even less :P

The English Patient

I swear this will be my last post about this movie. I just wonder if anyone who reads this had ever seen the movie? And if so how did you find it? I have talked to two different people who have seen it who could hardly make it through the whole movie because it was so boring. I have watched it three times in the last three or four weeks. I am almost ashamed to admit that....but something about it just touches me. I wonder why I am so drawn to a movie that makes me feel so incredibly sad. I have always enjoyed a good tear jerker, but this one just feels different for some reason. It doesn't make me bawl, I just feel SO sad when it is over. I am thinking about tracking down a copy of the book to read. See if it can add any interesting details or maybe it would be boring.

I also have found that I have the main character's name stuck in my head for days now. He is Hungarian and his last name is Almasy. But it's pronounced All-ma-she. Something like that. It keeps rolling around in my head.....Allmashey, Allmashey, Allmashey. I can't get it out, haha. I think, at least for now, this movie has found a place at the top of my favorite movies.

I am a keener

My course materials arrived on Friday from Athabasca University. I was excited to see them, but all of a sudden felt a pretty overwhelming feeling of doom. I thought, "What am I getting myself into? Why am I going back to school, I swore I would never be a student again when I finished massage school?!" I opened up the materials and looked at the different assignments and quizzes and exams that would evaluate me in these courses.

In the biology class I am taking there are four assignments to do and four quizzes as well as three midterms and a final exam. The assignments are pretty much entirely short answer questions and the quizzes are done over the phone with my tutor (the prof). The midterm and final exams, I will have to arrange to write them either at the U of S or SIAST when the time comes.

I also enrolled in a nutrition class. I chose it, because if I do get accepted into nursing it will count as the nutrition requirement for a nursing degree. The evaluation for that class involves only an assignment, a midterm and a final exam. The assignment involves keeping a detailed food diary for two days (including measuring or weighing everything I eat and drink). Then you compare it to the Canada food guide, then use a CD ROM program they give you to analyze it even more. Then you write about your level of activity, and decide if you are getting what you need from what you are eating. I think it should be enlightening.

I decided to crack open the books tonight. I had nothing else to do and thought, why not get a head start?! I got out the Biology text and read through chapter one and took notes and at the end I did the chapter end quiz and was able to answer all the questions. I will keep reading and see how it goes. I do not officially start my classes until July 1st, but I am free to start now if I like. The only thing is that if I have any questions or concerns about anything I am not able to contact my tutor until after July 1st.

I was thinking tonight about these classes. I am going to do my best to use my free time to work on these classes. I have a lot of days where I have long breaks at work, or mornings off, or evenings with nothing to do. I am hoping I will be motivated to use those times to study or work on assignments so that when the time comes that, for instance, I am going on summer holidays, it will not kill me to take a few days off.

Children

I just have to say that I cannot believe the number of people I know....friends and acquaintances who are expecting or have just given birth to their second child. Makes me feel old. And here I am going back to school.....

I am starting to understand when people say they are 29 years old and holding. I realize I am only 28, but 30 and even 40 isn't THAT far off. I guess I should go put in my dentures and go to the Co-op. Oh no wait, seniors day was on Tuesday.

Casablanca

I will admit that I have been watching a lot of movies lately. I have been in the mood for sappy romantic movies. I decided to check out Casablanca. I had never seen it, and I am not sure if I have ever watched a movie from that early on (1942). I don't generally find that I care much for black and white movies. I would say that I enjoyed it, but didn't love it. I think that movies back then were a little slower moving than ones today. We have very short attention spans these days and need to be wowed to keep watching. I also found that I didn't feel as emotionally drawn to some of the characters like I am in more modern movies.

The thing that really stood out to me in this movie was Ingrid Bergman's nose. Haha, not to be mean, but she has a pretty big nose. I found it refreshing to see someone who had not had a nose job, and who actually had some curves on her body. Not a skinny little bean pole. I thought it was funny how every time she was on the screen, they used some sort of softening filter, and shone bright lights in her eyes to make them sparkle.

Here is my new tattoo.

see more Fail Blog



Okay, maybe not, but it had me laughing pretty hard this morning!!

Tattoos

I have thought in the last few months about getting a tattoo. I am definitely not one to rush into it. For me, if I ever got one, it would have to be quite meaningful.....something I would want to look at for the rest of my life.

Not only is there that aspect of it, there's the 'where do I get it' aspect too. For me, I would prefer to have it somewhere I could see it, so I guess my back is out. But I would like it somewhere I could show people, or show it off, or if I would rather, I could cover it up. I realize that doesn't leave a lot of space. I also wanted to put it somewhere that it will not sag or stretch out too much. I was leaning toward my shoulder, not the back part, because I couldn't see it, but more on the side, upper arm, so it could be hidden by a t-shirt.

I have also been bugging Jay that we should get matching tattoos. I think it would be a bonding experience....Okay maybe not. Maybe I just want someone to come with me and hold my hand and get me tissues when I inevitably cry because I am a wuss when it comes to pain.

I have looked at a lot of tattoo designs online and have come up with something that I like, that isn't completely evil looking, and that can have a deeper meaning for me. I am not going to say what it is just yet....but if I ever get it done, I will post a picture. I think it is something that isn't too girly, so if Jay wanted to get a matching one, he wouldn't look like a sissy. I was also thinking of a certain Bible verse, possibly in Hebrew, but after looking it up online, it seems that it's popular among the celebrity crowd, which doesn't appeal to me. I want this to be something I have given a lot of thought to. Not that my idea is original at all, but I don't want to be a copycat.

This brings us to Grainfield's restaurant yesterday after church. We went to the early service yesterday morning since we went to be early Saturday night because Jay wasn't feeling that well, and we were bored. After church, at 10:15am we were thinking brunch might be nice, so we headed over to Grainfield's restaurant. The lady sitting behind Jay was probably about 55 or 60 years old. She was overweight, wearing short shorts and a low cut tank top. She had three visible tattoos. A maple leaf on her shoulder, a flower on her wrist and a rose on her chest. I suddenly started to think, do I really want that to be me in 20 years?? Though I do realize that most of my generation and younger have tattoos. They are much more accpetable these days. So if when I get to be 60 years old, I wear a low cut tank top and shorty shorts even though I am too fat to do so, maybe it would just look normal for me to have a tattoo because everyone else does.