Sunday, September 24, 2006

I feel like complaining

If you are one of the very few people who read this and have been to my house, you know my toilets are very very hard to flush. You have to push hard on the handle to an effort to defeat the vacuum seal in the tank. Earlier this week I broke the handle off! I can still flush, but I have to lift the lid to do so.

Bah.

Saw Gridiron Gang last night with my sister. I give it 3 out of 5, but I admit to liking sports movies in general. Even when they star The Rock. But the movie led to other things that bug me:

People who think their views on the movie DURING the movie will add to my entertainment experience.

Morons who can't disconnect for two whole hours and text message throughout the movie. Although I actually think this particular guy was perhaps recording the movie onto his cell phone because he kept holding it above his head. The blue light from the screen is so distracting!

And my popcorn was really salty!!

Things that bug me as a driver:

Peope who don't use stop lines and like to drift out into traffic!!! Rolling stops are one thing, but dude, you nearly plowed into me and I'm the one on the main street. Used my horn for the first time.

Pedestrians who jay walk. I think I should be allowed to hit them. Especially the old lady with the WALKER who decided to jaywalk!!!

People who actually do 50 in an 80 zone. Seriously. On the highway. And no, there wasn't any traffic in front of him, just behind him....

I'm sure this list will grow....


Best rumour of the week, with a strong likelyhood of being TRUE since it is in offical court documents - Belinda Stronach, Liberal MP, and Tie Domi, Toronto Leafs enforcer, having an affair! Man, I laughed out loud....

Sunday, September 17, 2006

blahblahblah

Excellent news - I finally finished my living room curtains! I think I like them, but I'm not 100% sure yet. I still have to make the matching roman shade for the patio door and possibly some cushions for the couch (aka the spare bed...). Then I'm moving onto my Christmas projects! Yes, that's right. I have a long list of things I want to make and a large number of them involve my favourite thing of all - hand sewing.

I had a really nice weekend. I had Friday off and spent it running errands and I went shopping with my mum. Friday night, my high school girl friends and I had a sleepover. Very old school, much laughing involved. Saturday, my sister, Rod, Fancy and I tried an Italian restaurant near my house. I thought it was quite good, but when they warn you of large portions, they really mean it. I think I could share a pasta dish with 3 people. We played a few board games after dinner and my sister stayed over. This morning, we went for a workout and a swim and then I spent the rest of the day sewing.

So I must say after a week of being a car owner, I'm loving it. The fall weather is settling in and it was very sweet being able to get groceries without having to walk in the rain. No twenty five minute waits at creepy bus stations! No two hour ride to see my parents. Of course, I haven't filled up the tank yet, so we will see how much I love it after that.

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Random points

I desperately need a break from sewing my curtains. I'm currently trying to turn a 15 foot long tube of fabric right side out to make curtain tabs and it's very boring. These curtains are taking forever. So much fabric! One panel is mostly done, except for the tabs and the bottom hem, but the second panel still needs side and top hems. I can't believe how much thread I'm going through.

I had a nasty moment this evening. I was walking into the kitchen when I saw a dark spot in the corner. At first I thought I had dropped something, but then it moved. Another damn spider - this one about an inch and a half wide. And bulky, not delicate like a daddy long legs. I used my boot to kill it. Why doesn't my cat torture and murder them like most pets I've had before?

Vancouver weather hit on Saturday for the first time since I moved here. I actually took my umbrella when I ran my errands. It felt like fall - a light rain, crunchy brown leaves beneath my feet as I walked. Of course, today was summer again, gorgeous and warm.

I had a nice weekend, even with the little bit of rain. I spent Saturday cooking for my first dinner party in my new place. I had my grandmothers, a family friend, my parents and my sister over for salad, homemade dinner rolls, roast chicken with rosemary, thyme and lemon, roast potatoes and carrots, green beans, and pavlova with strawberries and blueberries. First time I made a roast chicken, but since I've made turkeys, I figured it had to be pretty much the same. I think everything turned out well and I was especially proud of the pavlova since I rarely bake. Today I made chicken stock from the leftovers so I can make soup sometime.

I went to the gym this morning and had a good workout - in addition to my usual, I went swimming and swam slightly more than the distance needed for the sprint triathlon in March. I need to half my time though, so I will have to really concentrate on swimming. I'm thinking about taking adult swim lessons so I can actually learn to do it properly. Maybe in October or November as I'm already taking a weight training class starting later this month. I did learn something valuable today - if I go for a run first, I need to stretch before going in the pool, otherwise the cold water results in hideous leg cramps. Much ouchie.

Ah yes - my big news. You may have noticed my whining about the transit system. I gave in to convenience (seriously, 2 hour bus rides?) and safety worries (25 minute waits in the dark, in crappy neighbourhoods) and got a car! It's a 1998 Ford Escort, in green. It's in really great condition, with only 97000 kms on it. I really like it and it's very comfortable to drive. Funny that I got an Escort though - my first car was a 1993 Escort in blue. I thought I'd maybe like something like an Echo or a Focus, but out of all the cars I test drove (I only drove cars in my price range, no point in dreaming), the Escort was my favourite. Now I just have to be careful not to turn into one of those people who drive to the corner store.

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

Long Weekend

Phew. This long weekend actually felt long. This was probably my first real long weekend in years since I was working part time before and frequently had several days off in a row. When I was working nights, I worked every second weekend no matter what. So technically this weekend was a three day break. How come I don't feel rested?

I woke up on Saturday almost an hour earlier than my usual workday as I had an early morning appointment (after staying up to 330am reading Time Traveler's Wife - great book!). When I got home, I spent a few hours cleaning before hopping on a bus for the two hour ride to my grandmother's - a bus, the skytrain, the seabus and another bus. Oh the joy. It was worth it though, as I had a lovely cup of tea (what can I say, we're British!), a piece of chocolate cake and a long chat with her. My parents and sister picked me up from there and we went to the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE). It's a lot like K-days - rides, a midway, exhibition halls and performers. We wandered around for hours, had supper listening to some mandolin players, watched the Superdogs (way more amusing than I thought possible), resisted spending a fortune on useless junk, and ended the night with an ice cream cone.

My sister came home with me and spent the weekend at my house. We went for a workout and a swim Sunday morning, checked out the mall, had Rod and Fancy over for some board games, and watched Hidalgo. Monday morning, we took the bus back to my parents (AGAIN) and met up with them and grandmother for a walk through Lynn Valley Headwaters - a really incredible area. We went for about four hours, and had lunch in a sunny spot in the middle of the forest. Lots of people on the trails as the weather was gorgeous.

I've been trying to make curtains for my living room but haven't got very far. So much fabric to fold and iron and hem. I want to finish them by Saturday though as I'm hoping to have my first dinner party. I'll have to make a serious effort!