Wise words

I don't mean to diminish the tragedy that happened in Boston in any way.  It's horrible, and there is a lot wrong with the world.  Words like these, however, are what keep me sane.

I've decided

My least favourite thing to do:



Bra Shopping.




It's an exercise in frustration.  I had to go to four stores today.  FOUR.  

The problem is that I am fairly generously endowed in that area, but I've lost enough weight that my old bras don't fit.  I  used to buy my bras at the fat lady store, but now my band size is smaller than they sell, so I have to go to regular sized stores, only they don't usually carry large enough cup sizes.  

And, so I went from store to store, and chiselled away at my body image with each attempt.

Somehow, I ended up in a change room across from a woman with exactly the same problem.  Sad to say, we bonded over excessive boobage.  Luckily, we both hit pay dirt with a sales woman who not only knew her stuff, she knew the inventory.  Even then, we were there for over an hour, as we tried on bra after bra and tossed them over the change room doors to swap back and forth.    Finally, as we were both about to give up, we came upon the miracle bra.  Not the one that pushes your boobs up to your chin - this one holds everything where it belongs and fits properly while miraculously not looking like something my granny would wear.  

We each bought three.

The Doorbell...

...won't stop ringing.  Every single day, somebody is at the door, asking me to sponsor them in a walkathon, donate bottles or purchase some sort of worthless crap.  It used to be bad, but it's gotten out of control.  So, I finally broke down and bought a "No Soliciting" sign.  I didn't want to do it - I don't want to deface my house with all sorts of signs - but it was becoming a problem.

If somebody wanted to mow my lawn, shovel my walk, pick up dog poop or do something useful in exchange for my money, I'd probably give them a chance.  But,

I've chosen and donated to my preferred charity.

I don't buy junk off of random salespeople

And, I'm sorry, but I don't feel any need to financially support your child's school, trip abroad or sports activities.  I know that children can be expensive, but I chose not to have children.  A large chunk of my property taxes go towards the local schools, so that's my contribution to the youth of society, as far as I'm concerned.  And it's a lot.

So, long story short, I broke down and got a No Soliciting sign.  I put it on the wall beside the front door, directly above the doorbell.
YOU CAN'T MISS IT.

So, why is my doorbell still ringing every day???  I don't want to be rude, but lately I've been succumbing to opening the door, interrupting the sob stories and sales pitches by pointing to the sign and closing the door.

I know, I could not open the door at all, but the dogs get 30 seconds to go berserk when the doorbell rings.   It's not long, but it's enough to make it clear we're home... if they didn't already know because I work in a desk that's looking directly into the front window beside the door all day.  I would feel weird to sit there - know they know I'm there - and not respond.

I've decided that I need to get a front door intercom.  I don't need video, but I want to talk to people - tell them to go away - without opening the door.   I'm not sure where I'll get it (they don't seem to be very popular around here) I really need to get on that.

Annoying Canadians

Yesterday we went to a pot luck birthday party for one of the Japanese girls.  Although I saw most of them on the day that we picked up our girls for the first time, this was the first time that I spent any quality time with any of the host Canadians.

This might sound all judge-y and negative, but I didn't like them.  I thought that, as a whole, they made apoor impression and I wasn't happy that they were the people representing our country.  Frankly, they seemed like white trash to me.

For example, the "dishes" that everybody brought to the pot luck consisted of 10 bags of chips or Dorritos, 3 macaroni salads - two pre-made at the grocery store, some beans, three pots of rice and a spinach salad.  Take a wild guess who brought the spinach salad? (Me.)

There was a lady there who had a 2 month old baby.  She waved that baby around like it was an accessory and not a human being.  After a while, I had to get up and move because there was only so many times that I could smile, coo, or say how cute she was.  Except, shortly after I moved, the boyfriend - not the father - took the baby, sat beside me and started to feed her formula.  He then spent the next 10 minutes telling me that even though he'd only known her for a few weeks, he felt like her father.  And look - she had blue eyes, just like him.

I got up again and started to clean up.  We'd been there a half hour... the others, who had arrived about an hour before us, all got up and left and made no move to help with the cleanup.  I spend over an hour cleaning others' messes.  I had to really watch myself at that point, not to be the cranky b!tch I felt like being.



Shortly before bed, Mayu  told me that she'd been invited to go to the house where her friend is staying.  She didn't know where they live, how they'd get there or how she'd get home but I didn't want to say she couldn't go.  This morning, we talked about it again and I told her I'd meet her at school so that I could talk to the other host mom.  If you can believe it, that host mom was a no show - she didn't pick up her girl from school... just left her hanging with no phone call to the school or anything.  In fact, she didn't even pick up her cell when we tried to call.

We stood around and waited for over a 45 minutes before the program director finally decided to take Mayu's friend home (and hope there would be somebody there to let her in).  I do realize that Mayu is 16, relatively independent and intelligent but there's no way I'm letting her go there.  So, instead, I told her friend that she could come to my house for pizza tomorrow.  I'll have to call the other host mom tonight and make arrangements.   I'm a little afraid she won't pick her up then either, but I guess the worst that will happen then is that the girls will have a sleep over.

The C Word

I've had a few weepy days lately, after finding a lump last week.  I'm not one who does self-exams with any sort of regularity, but found it after feeling achy for a few days .   I know that the chances of it being cancer are low, but the pain and the fact that I can't remember the last time I checked somehow made it seem scarier.

I called to get an appointment to see the doctor, hoping that I'd made it all up in my head and that he'd say it is nothing.  He didn't - he felt a definite lump and wanted it checked out further.  

I was scheduled for an ultrasound and mammogram (what fun!), this morning.  The tech said that they didn't see anything to worry about.  Maybe I should wait until the report comes back from the radiologist until it's official, but I'm guessing now that I'm in the clear.

The moral of this story is: if you don't do your self exams now, you should start.  Even if you don't find anything, at least then you'll know.  Because if someday you do find something, it'd be easier  to handle if you knew that you were good just a few weeks ago.  I can tell you from experience that it's no walk in the park to have to wonder not just what that lump is, but also how long it's been growing.

Things I know to be true

Shrinking out of your clothes is a double edged sword when you're losing weight.  It's great to know that you now fit smaller sizes, but if you live on a tight budget and plan to lose a significant amount of weight, it can be difficult to  justify buying clothes that you hope won't fit you for long.    So, you wear baggy pants in the meantime.

Pants that used to be too tight are now a size or two too big.  I wear them anyway, and hide them under baggy shirts.   I don't want to spend money on clothes until I get closer to my goal weight and size.  Since I work from home, I can usually get away with this.

The one thing that I have learned the hard way, however, is that while a belt may hold up baggy pants, there isn't much you can do about the skivvies underneath that keep slipping down because they're two sizes too big.

Captain Obvious

This is an excerpt from an article I found online about plants that repel mosquitoes:

Catnip is a natural mosquito repellent. In August 2010, entomologists at Iowa State University  reported to the American Chemical Society that catnip is ten times more effective than DEET, the chemical found in most commercial insect repellents. According to Iowa State researcher Chris Peterson, the reason for its effectiveness is still unknown. “It might simply be acting as an irritant or they don’t like the smell. But nobody really knows why insect repellents work.”

In the laboratory, Peterson put groups of 20 mosquitoes in a two-foot glass tube, half of which was treated with nepetalactone, a biologically active characteristic constituent of catnip. After 10 minutes, only an average of 20 percent – about four mosquitoes – remained on the side of the tube treated with a high dose (1.0%) of the oil. In the low dose test (0.1%) an average of 25% – five mosquitoes – stayed on the treated side. When the same tests were conducted using DEET (diethyl-meta-toluamide), approximately 40 to 45% – eight to nine mosquitoes – remained on the treated side. A ten-fold higher concentration of DEET was required to obtain results similar to those of the Catnip.

Catnip is very easy to grow. This perennial herb is related to mint, and grows readily both as a weed and a commercially cultivated plant in most areas of the US. While catnip will repel mosquitoes in close proximity to the plant, some people apply crushed catnip leaves or catnip oil for more robust protection. Bear in mind, however, that cats will respond to you similarly as they would respond to the plant itself. Cat owners may want to choose an alternative plant for repelling mosquitoes.

Things I Know to be True

It isn't easy to live on $200/week for food, pet stuff, fun stuff, and car stuff -  especially when you stick to it, so that when the money's gone, you don't get anymore stuff until the next week.

This week, I was surprised to learn that the cat had eaten all of his prescription diet food.   He convinced me that he couldn't survive until Monday on celery alone, so suddenly a big chunk of my $200 was gone.  

I've got 37¢ to my name (in the budget) now.

It's a sad day when your cat's grocery bill trumps your own.

It Pays to Ask

Every year, I go visit the lady at my bank who arranged my mortgage.  I don't invest with my bank, but I have my mortgage and line of credit with them, as well as a savings and chequing account.   With even that little bit, we review the "service" I get with them, and look for ways to save me money.  Every year, we've found a small way.  Last year, I agreed to cut down my ATM transactions in exchange for a $5/month discount on my bank charges.  This year, they knocked my interest rate down by 1/2 a percent.

About 3-4 months ago, I called the cable/internet/phone company and said that I needed to cut back on my expenses.  I was thinking of moving over to their competitor, but wondered if they could match or beat the competitor's prices.  I got a deal that saves me $40/month, but after a week or so, I realized that I missed some of the channels that I'd lost with the new package.  I called again, was told that I could have them back on a trial basis for 3 months, and then would have to pay $10/month to keep them.  Last week, the 3 months was up, and I reluctantly called to tell them that I wasn't going to pay to keep them.  I liked these channels, but it wasn't worth the extra $10/month.  Instead, the cable company agreed to let me keep them and knocked an additional $15/month off my bill.  They said that they'd reworked their cable packages shortly after my last call to meet the market demands.

The moral of these stories?  It's pays to ask for these things.  Neither the bank nor the cable company volunteered these discounts, until I asked for them.  It's admittedly a little hard on the ego to call companies out of the blue and ask for discounts - it kind of makes me feel like a pauper.  But, I've got an extra $55/month in my pocket, just from the cable company.  And 1/2% might not seem like much, but over the next couple of years, I have no doubt that it'll add up.  That's worth a little embarrassment in my book any day.

Things I know to be true

Days when your dog steals and consumes both a bar of soap and a bowl of brussel sprouts may seem frustrating, but they don't hold a candle to what you'll experience over the next 24 hours.

Tallulah Belle Poodle has done more than her fair share of contribution towards global warming today.

Size matters

I got a new purse last fall.

It's bigger than I'm used to, but I thought I'd give it a shot.  It's got lots of pockets, so I figured I could be all organized and keep everything in a specific spot.

Let me tell you, I've been throwing things in this purse.  Spare cloth bags, in case I ended up in a store unprepared.  Hand sanitizer, for when we eat out.  Epi pens.  A toothbrush and toothpaste.  My Blackberry.  A book.  My wallet.  A half empty bottle of pop and a full sized chocolate bar.  

And the bag seemed empty.

I'm really not sure when those last two were thrown in, but I found them over the weekend.  I've concluded that if I can carry a bottle of pop and a chocolate bar around for an indeterminate amount of time without knowing it, my purse is too big.   

All I need is room to carry my wallet and an Epi pen, and anything more is temptation.  (Kind of like getting a cart when you run into the grocery store for three things.)  Methinks it's time to dig back in the closet and find something smaller.

I was blind, but now I see

I got my first "I'm getting old" glasses last week.

I think I liked it better when I couldn't see the dust.

Suck it up, Buttercup

There are two very different responses to what I'm about to say.  One will come from the Canadians, and the other will come from the Americans.  You know which is which.

It's -10C outside tonight, with a -17C windchill.    I walk (carry) my dogs every night, regardless of the weather, but tonight I really don't want to go.  I want to stay home tonight.  In fact, I want to stay home until spring arrives.

Overlooked

In my excitement, I may have let a detail or two slide.  I realized this a few weeks ago, but it took me a while to decide that the humour in this situation outweighs my embarrassment.

Ever since my house flooded last summer, I've been scheming to make a library.  You know that.  You have all had to read many posts about the various stages of my plans.   Really, though, those barely touch on my obsession.  You have no idea how many hours I've spent combing through stores and the web, planning which pieces I'd use where.

The chaise lounge is the star of the room.  I love it, and the granite table that's almost ready for its grande entrance.  I'm still looking for the perfect side table and floor lamp.  The bookshelves, even though they took 4 hours each to put together, are really quite great.  The little detail that's preventing the new library room from coming together?

I forgot that almost all of my books floated away in the flood.

That's right.  My library has almost no books.    I've got a few of the goodies that I kept upstairs, but they fill maybe three of the cubbies in the new bookshelves.  Until then, the shelves are bare.    I am an idiot.

Adult Truths

I stole this off of a friend's Facebook page.  It needed to be done.

Things I Know to be True

Today, I gave in to the flu and general exhaustion that's been dogging me for a few weeks.  I called the boss, agreed to check in every few hours in case anything urgent came up and then declared today to be a sick day.  After standing in a hot, steaming shower, I had a glass of hot ginger ale and then went to bed.

Cotton lay down, right beside my head.  Tallulah lay sideways, across the bed, with her head resting on my tummy.  Winter sat on the other side of my head and lulled me to sleep with his purrs.  When I woke up three hours later, they were still there.    My ears still ache and my chest still wheezes, but the fever is broken.  I'm starting to think that I might just survive.

The point of the story being:
Sometimes you need more than just rest.  Sometimes, you need the moral support of your loved ones too.

Things I know to be true

It doesn't matter if the packaging on your mascara says it is water proof.  If you take your dogs out for a walk on day that's so cold and windy that your eyelashes freeze shut, you will look like a raccoon when you get home.

It doesn't really matter, though, because nobody can see you under your (fake) fur lined hood, toque and the three scarves that you have wrapped around your head.

Gotta love the Canadian winter.

An observation

Sitting on a balance ball while you work on a computer is good for your core.

Sitting on a balance ball while a cat perches on your lap and you try to reach around him to work on a computer is even better for your core.  And it's probably good for his core too, not that he cares.

I'm going to feel this in the morning.

Shrinkage

I bought some pj's last week.  I struggle to get pj bottoms that are long enough, so often end up wearing men's pyjamas... and then struggle with covering up the open fly.   I paid extra to get these at a specialty shop, but told myself it was worth it to have some feminine pj's that are long enough.  They fit in the dressing room, but this is what happened when I washed them in cold and hanged them to dry.

Being tall sucks.

I should buy a lottery ticket

It seems that I'm on the gov't statistical radar lately.

A few months ago, my  name was randomly drawn for a census of sorts.  I received a letter from the federal gov't, stating that I'd soon receive a visit from one of their own who would be asking me questions about my employment.  I was legally required to answer those questions truthfully then, and during the next four monthly followup calls as well.  I guess it hasn't been too horrible; I just have to answer a bunch of silly questions, like if I've changed jobs, taken any vacation or sick time or what shade of blue my socks were on Tuesday.

I'm not sure that I understand the benefit of collecting this information, but that's fine. There's only one more of these calls coming in, so everything will go back to normal... nobody will care about the details of my job but me.

Except, I picked up the mail today, and saw that I had a letter from the Health department in the Provincial gov't.  My name has been randomly drawn again.  This time, I've been chosen as a lab rat of sorts, wherein the gov't will be gathering any and all data collected regarding any cervical cancer screening that I have done over the next three years.

They sent two pages of info about cervical cancer, its prevention and the importance of regular testing.   I understand the purpose of the study, but can't say that I agree with their tactics.  Apparently, I don't have to answer any questions or take calls; they'll just snag the info directly the labs and dr's offices that I visit.

If I don't wish to take part in this study, I've been instructed to contact my family doctor so that they can explain the importance of cervical cancer screening.  That's the only option provided.   No where in those two pages does it provide me with a way to opt out of this study.    Except, there's a catch: I wouldn't couldn't participate, even if I wanted to.

As of last March, I no longer have the necessary parts.  So, the gov't is not just going to invade my privacy, they're doing it all for nothing.  That's our tax dollars at work, folks.     It makes me so proud.