ruth birthday

Happy birthday to my sister, Ruth!




With the weather cooled off, it's perfect outdoor running weather. Yesterday I was doing my usual run along the waterfront, listening to music on my Rio, when I suddenly noticed how pretty it was on the lake, with the late afternoon sun slanting across the water and the sailboats and yachts clustered along the docks.

So I decided to take a break. Took off my headphones, sat on a bench and watched the water for a while. I could hear a faint jingling; it sounded like it was coming from the tops of the masts of the boats as they swayed in the gentle breeze. Maybe you boat-types out there will know what caused the sound, but it certainly was a lulling sound.

Jeff had to do some work in the evening (making something for Ruth's birthday :-)), so I decided to go out by myself. Took a book (The Dominant Blonde by Alisa Kwitney -- thanks, Rand), had the red curry chicken bowl at Milestones on John Street. Finished the book, then went to the Paramount to see Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever.

Even ignoring the stupid title, the movie was pretty mediocre. I suppose I knew it would be, but I couldn't resist a movie co-starring Lucy Liu. Ballistic was so obviously a Matrix-wannabee. And geez, I'm a Lucy Liu fan but even I got tired of seeing the camera pan slowly up her Trinity-lookalike skin-tight leather-clad body to pause meaningfully on her face.

Other things I got tired of real fast:

- headbanger music during chase sequences, running sequences, heck...through pretty much everything

- slow motion sequences of feet walking and running

- slow motion sequences of Lucy Liu shooting things

- Antonio Banderas (does the guy EVER shave??)

- explosion after explosion after explosion

I can almost imagine the conversation during script-writing:

WRITER 1: Hm...so what should happen next in the movie?

WRITER 2: I dunno. How about an explosion?

WRITER 1 (scribbling): Great idea! And then maybe a slow motion sequence of Antonio Banderas walking across the living room.

WRITER 2: How about running?

WRITER 1: Okay sure, running.

WRITER 2: And then another explosion!

WRITER 1: And then a slow-motion sequence of Lucy Liu shooting something.

WRITER 2: I love it! This is great stuff!

WRITER 1: And then TWO explosions! Big ones!!!

WRITER 2: God, I love my work.

The best thing about the movie was that I got to see the trailer for "Nemesis" on the big screen.

Also can't wait to see "Spirited Away". Jeff says he wants to see it, too, so I'm waiting until next week.





Links/News:

One year ago, I was chopping wood.

Three years ago, I bought Great Big Sea tickets.

Four years ago, I went to the Ontario Science Centre with Annie and Sara and almost threw up.





Links/News:

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Today's Blatherpics:

	Ruth and her toy rabbit.
	My sister and me. Ruth's on the left.
	Ruth in the hospital with Sara.
	Ruth, Kaarel, Sara and Annie.

poll: doctors

Remember those mutant bananas I talked about last week, that I bought from Grocery Gateway at the beginning of September? Some of them STILL AREN'T RIPE. From time to time, Jeff and I will try peeling one (like this morning), but inevitably it's still hard and tastes green. Of the bunch of six or so, only two have ripened enough to eat.

I sent e-mails to Customer Service at Grocery Gateway, but still haven't received a response. Don't think I'll be ordering bananas from them again. Thing is, the remaining bananas are starting to get black specks on them, which nixes my idea of keeping them forever as an interesting conversation piece; my current suspicion is that the outside peel is going to start rotting while the inside stays green and inedible. Augh.

The next part is not for the squeamish.

Speaking of augh, I hate blood tests. I had one yesterday. It's not so much the needles that I hate, those I'm not crazy about those either. It's the fact that doctors and nurses can never find my veins, so I end up being jabbed multiple times. Same thing happened yesterday, when I was sent to the bloodwork lab in my doctor's building. The conversation went something like this:

ME (when it was my turn): "Just to let you know, everyone always has trouble getting blood from me. The last couple times I was here, they had to use a 'butterfly needle'."

NURSE: "Okay, sure. What's that from?" (points to the wad of gauze taped onto the inside of my elbow)

ME: "My doctor was trying to give me a blood test but was having trouble finding my veins, so she sent me here."

NURSE: "Ah ok." (prepares a needle)

ME: "Is that butterfly needle?"

NURSE: "No, I don't think you need a butterfly needle. Let me try this one first." (jabs me, makes concerned and annoyed noises, shifts the needle) "Hm...your veins are being difficult..."

ME (gritting my teeth; it feels like she's doing a little excavation in my arm with the needle): "They had to use a butterfly needle last time."

NURSE: "I didn't think a butterfly needle was necessary. I'm using a very small needle. Hrm. Too difficult." (pulls out needle, tosses it, finally prepares another needle, jabs me in the same place as last time)

ME (gritting my teeth more since it hurts more this time): "Is that a butterfly needle?"

NURSE: "Yes. Good, it's working. There we go."

Next time I come in for a blood test, I'm going to print up a t-shirt with the words "USE A BUTTERFLY NEEDLE" in big letters on the front and back. Maybe tattooed across my forehead, too.

And no, I don't have any idea how a butterfly needle differs from a regular needle; I've never been able to bring myself to look while she's doing it.

Ha, to think that at one time I was considering going into medicine.

Poll: Doctors

Do you mind getting needles? Do you get regular check-ups? Do doctors make you nervous? When's the last time you were at the hospital as a patient? Do you give blood?

Answer in Blatherchat

News/Updates

One year ago, I was looking for work.

Three years ago, I showed my friend ScottM the new Inkspot office space at The Toronto Carpet factory.

Four years ago, I shared my chili recipe.

Five years ago, I saw "In and Out" with Jeff.

The CIA is consulting sf writers. Source: Wired

Deep-fried Twinkies? Source: Globe & Mail (and BoingBoing!)

SF writer and physicist Robert Forward has died. Source: Locus. You can see the author's obituary, which he wrote himself, here.

poll: pies

Whenever Jeff and I go to visit his mom in the country, I start reminiscing about the days when we lived out there as well, with trees all around us, birds doing the Disney Snow White routine every morning, fresh air and sunshine bla bla blah. I start thinking, Geez, maybe we should move back out into the country again.

Then I remind myself of the reasons we moved into the city in the first place, including the fact that country living was starting to drive me mad with cabin fever. Needing a car just to go into town for a loaf of bread. Feeling trapped and resentful whenever Jeff drove into the city without me. Going through the phone book and finding out not a single pizza service would make deliveries to our area because we were too far from town.

Don't get me wrong...I love the outdoors. I look forward to our visits to the cottage, the canoe trips, exploring nature. I just don't want to live there year round, at least not yet.

Anyway, we had a great visit with Ginny. Parki, Alison, JeffL and Kye were there as well. I hadn't seen Kye in ages. He's a pretty happy baby. He hasn't quite yet learned how to crawl, but can get around pretty well by dragging himself on his stomach. He must have baby arm muscles of steel by now.

We went for a lengthy walk in the afternoon, with lots of hills. Loved the conversation dynamics: the group kept breaking up into twos and threes along the way, natural pockets of conversation that shifted as we walked.





Dinner was amazing, thanks to Ginny's culinary prowess. I'm so jealous. To create a dinner like this (even if I had the skill), I'd be stressed and frantic in the kitchen the whole time, my clothes speckled with oil and pepper, snarling and exhausted by the time dinner was served (in stages, since I inevitably wouldn't be able to have everything finish cooking at the same time).

Ginny does it so casually and is still able to hang out with the guests and chat, always looking comfortable and relaxed, without a speck of oil or pepper on her clothes. We had corn chowder and lobster soup with tarragon, barbecued sea bass with an Asian glaze, homemade salsa, green beans, baby potatoes with some fantastic dressing, tomatoes (grown in Ginny's garden) with basil oil and fresh basil. Dessert: chocolate cake and peach ice cream.

Ginny showed us an e-mail from someone who must have found her restaurant Web site through a search engine:


Hello!

I want to send the friend a chocolate pie, my friend in Canada in city Toronto. I from Azerbaijans. Is it possible? I shall send you money :) you a pie to my friend. Help me if you in Toronto.

if yes, then can send me a photo of your pies? i am sorry me for mine English. I communicate with you with help of the program of the interpreter

thanks :)


We looked up Azerbaijan in an atlas; it appears to be near or in Russia. How cool that someone that far away wants Ginny to bake a chocolate pie for someone in Toronto! And what a great PR/marketing opportunity, too. "OASIS PIES -- SOLD WORLDWIDE". :-)

Speaking of pies, I haven't had a food poll in a while, so...

POLL: Pies!

Do you like pies? What's your favourite? (or favourites) Have you ever baked a pie? What's the best pie you've ever tasted?





Three years ago, my dad-in-law was in the hospital.

Four years ago, I went biking with David and talked about food movies.

Five years ago, I was curious about the neighbours across the hallway.

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Today's Blatherpics:

	Kye, 8 months old.
	Our walk yesterday.
	Table setting at Ginny's.

dead mice

Jeff and I saw fourteen houses yesterday. I brought my digital camera and a notebook and kept notes so we'd remember which house was which: "Suspiciously friendly dog." "Beside co-op construction site." "Troll in garden." etc.

Hey, there's a steel drum band on the street across from our building. They started playing while I was typing this. Rehearsing or performing? This area's pretty dead on Sunday mornings, so I assume rehearsing. But I digress.

We've only been out twice with the real estate agent on house-hunting expeditions, but I'm already picking up some interesting bits of knowledge, such as:

- Jeff likes creaky floors. I hate creaky floors.

- A lot more people use Mac computers than I thought.

- A house can be too big.

- A house we'd normally think was pretty boring-looking looks great to us if it's on a street lined with mature trees.

One of the houses we looked had a dead mouse on the back porch. This was not a selling feature.

Hope you're all having a great weekend.




Links/News:

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Today's Blatherpics:

	Top of Roy Thompson Hall, which I can see from my home office window. The white dots are seagulls (not dead mice, sorry).
	View from our apartment.

guinea pig communicator

So I went over to my sister's for dinner last night while Jeff was out gaming with the guys. Annie and Sara were delighted to see me; they hadn't been expecting me until tonight, when Jeff and I usually come to Sunday dinner. I watched a bit of "The Weekenders" with them, a cartoon I like almost as much as they do. My dad records it on his VCR since they don't get the channel the show's on.

Annie immediately sat in my lap as soon as I settled on the floor, cross-legged. I love that. She does as if it's most natural thing, then leans back against me, or cuddles against my chest, pulling her knees up. It's all I can do to keep from wrapping my arms around her and kissing the top of her head over and over. Sometimes if she's distracted by the tv, I'll do it anyway. :-)

Just before dinner, Sara showed me some crafts she had made on her own, including a very cool-looking "guinea pig communicator" made out of cardboard and string and coloured construction paper. Annie just started piano lessons, and proudly played me the first piece she's learned, as well as a piece that she composed herself. Ok, so the piece was only about six notes long, but hey, she WROTE IT HERSELF! Not bad for a five-year-old. I was bursting with aunt-like pride. Holy cow, do I ever love those girls.





After dinner, Ruth and I drove downtown. We walked and talked, then settled in some big comfy armchairs in a coffee shop at Chapters (I had a nonfat Tazo Chai, she had water), went back to my place to hang out and talk some more. Neither of us remember me having a Raggedy Ann doll when I was little, by the way (see yesterday's photo), but Ruth had one. We concluded that I must have grabbed the doll away from her before the photo was shot, hence the smug look on my face. :-)

Looking at houses all day today with our real estate agent. I suspect the houses will all start to blur after the first few, so I'm bringing a notebook and my digital camera. Wish us luck.





Links/News:

One year ago, I was thinking about what it meant to be Japanese.

Two years ago, I bought comics.

Three years ago, I had no chocolate in my apartment.

Four years ago, Allison, Jodi, Rand & I visited Adam at Darien Lake.

Hayao Miyazaki's "Spirited Away" is in the theatres! Can't wait to see this. Here's a review from Nando Times, for those interested.

Glad to hear that the plagiarism suit against J.K. Rowling was dropped. Apparently another children's author, Nancy Stouffer, accused Rowling of stealing her ideas. The court ruled that Stouffer "perpetuated a fraud" through her false testimony and submission of falsified evidence.

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Today's Blatherpics:

	I took this photo of Ruth when she was still in high school, I think. Part of my Family Photo Archiving project (gradually scanning favourite photos into digital format).
	An interesting-looking car that Jeff and I passed on Front Street a few days ago. Anyone know what kind it is?
	Annie playing the first piece she's learned in her piano lessons for me.