if it isn't apparent from previous posts, let me state it here, in no uncertain terms: i simply love aidan, my 2-year-old friend. he's amazing, even when he's cranky. he always greets me with a smile, he loves wrestling, exploring, watching gravity at work, and talking about animals, trucks, and tractors. on saturday i babysat for ten hours, many of which he spent asleep. he hadn't had much of a nap that afternoon, so i kept things low-key: closed the blinds, kept my voice low, and watched the heffalump movie (which i adore). after i changed him into his sleeper, he stood in front of me as a i sat on the floor. he reached out and touched my hair, which he loves to play with. whenever i give him a ride on my shoulders, whether it be for a walk or so he can see over the fence, he always messes my hair up. well, this time, he reached out and touched my hair, and said . . .
"eew, yuck!"
there are no words . . . only giggles.
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Monday, July 18, 2005
why so quiet?
i know you're wondering. well . . . i've been working and watching movies and babysitting much. my next semester is finally shaping up, and the guide to calgary i'm working on is . . . fun.
so, watched "100 huntley street" this morning, which i NEVER EVER EVER EVER do. this guy from the gateway in toronto was on. he's a salvation army guy, does awesome stuff with homeless folks. he called them his friends, and he said it without the quotes. you know, those quotes that mean "i'm in miiiinistry. i'm sooooo cool. i hang out with people who are less fooooortunate. look at me!" yeah, no. very real guy.
i want to love people, and not see them as projects.
in prayer yesterday, i realized (AGAIN!) that i strive. i try not to try! yeah, prayer is good, btw. God shows up, says stuff, loves me. i can dig it.
k, back to work for me!
peace and love . . .
so, watched "100 huntley street" this morning, which i NEVER EVER EVER EVER do. this guy from the gateway in toronto was on. he's a salvation army guy, does awesome stuff with homeless folks. he called them his friends, and he said it without the quotes. you know, those quotes that mean "i'm in miiiinistry. i'm sooooo cool. i hang out with people who are less fooooortunate. look at me!" yeah, no. very real guy.
i want to love people, and not see them as projects.
in prayer yesterday, i realized (AGAIN!) that i strive. i try not to try! yeah, prayer is good, btw. God shows up, says stuff, loves me. i can dig it.
k, back to work for me!
peace and love . . .
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
so . . . i'm back!
i love adventures. like leaving my cell phone in my cab when it dropped me off yesterday afternoon. it's all good in the hood, though, 'cause he drove it back. sweet guy. anyway, i actually am 90% unpacked already, and will finish that up by the end of the day!
yay for motivation and living intentionally! :)
yay for motivation and living intentionally! :)
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
most memorable . . .
it seemed such a simple plan: katrina and her brother james would drive from stouffville, pick me up, and we would meet up with sarah in grimsby at tehillah niagara. no sweat.
so, katrina and james took a wrong turn on the way to pick me up, thus getting us about 20 minutes behind schedule. no worries, though, because james was definitely gonna make up time on the way. after cruising down the 407 for a while, the incessant doorlocking and flickering lights got on our nerves, so we pulled over and proceeded to open and then slam every door, including the trunk. no dice. the machine gun/microwave popcorn sound continued. we decided to be mature and ignore it. 10 minutes into driving on the qew, we started wondering if we were going the right way - there were no relevant signs, and we were using directions, not a map. just as james was about to pull over to get gas and ask directions, katrina noticed that the exit numbers were getting closer to the one we needed: christie street. sweetness itself.
and, oh, look! now exit #71 is the next one! it is 7:01 and we can just see the light at the end of the tunnel! we're driving in the far left lane when the van begins to make very clear the fact that it is dry. no gas. james manages to get it to the shoulder, and we coast for while. after some ado, we lock the car and start walking toward the off-ramp, knowing that sarah will be at tehillah, car in tow, and will surely be able to help. walking, walking, walking. a car pulled over and offered us a ride after a few minutes, and it turned out the church was 2 minutes' drive away! sweetness part deux!
ok, so we get to lakemount, and sarah shows up a few minutes later. we tell her all that's happened, and she drives us to a gas station. the gas costs 94 cents! but they don't have gas cans, so that's not gonna work. we find another service station, where katrina and james buy two gas cans and pay only 83 cents for gas. savings: sweetness returns.
we finally arrive at tehillah, only 45 minutes late. the worship is cool, God is cooler, and mark gives an ab-fab message that i'll recount in another post. when worship starts up again (by which i mean we started singing again . . . i kinda hope the worship ran throughout) the four of us are just whispering about how far away niagara falls is. sarah say 25 minutes. sweet action!
off the niagara falls we went. we took off around 9:30 and got there about 10 . . . proceeding to engage in the north american ritual known as "searching for reasonably priced parking that doesn't involve leaving the car in the next county." it is about this time that we begin to wonder why we brought both vehicles . . . but, never you mind. finally, we ditch sarah's van faaaar away and katrina drives us to $5 parking. sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.
apart from sarah, we're all starving. the cherries and pretzels we'd been munching on don't seem to constitute dinner. so before we actually go gawk at the falls, we duck into wendy's for some well-deserved grub. we get to the front of the line and hear those fatal words, "sorry, we don't take debit." BOTH of the atms in the vicinity are off-line. much frustration follows. nonetheless, we go and watch the beauty of falling water. i don't say it that way to minimize its beauty, but to point out a profound reality: something need not be complicated to be very very beautiful. sigh. the coloured lights are bouncing off the water as it crashes onto the rocks below, and we feel that we have finally achieved a goal we set out to accomplish. sweet success.
at this point, we'd given up on getting food in niagara falls proper, so we picked up katrina and james' car, drove to sarah, said a potential goodbye to sarah (in case we didn't find an appropriate place to eat between the falls and where our paths diverged) and . . . tried to find our way out. i will, in the future, complain less about the lack of much-needed signage in calgary. at least, when i complain i will not compare calgary to ontario. such comparison does nothing to further my point. after two or three false starts, we finally get on the right road and are soon in the warm embrace of queen elizabeth once again. wheeeee! how sweet it is to be loved by her.
we pass one or two service stops that have tim hortons because, obviously, we're holding out for a wendy's. the third stop has one! yayness itself! alas, it takes not debit. grrrr! they call this civilization?? the golden arches drive-thru, however, is more than happy to accept our money in any form, so we are soon fitted with assorted drinks and sandwiches, as well as fries. it was, as i expressed to my friends, like eating the holy grail. sweet sweet food.
we parted from sarah for real, and headed back on the road, our tummies happier. after several phone calls from family, and gathering up aaaaaaall my stuff, i finally got back to my parents' house. home sweet home.
i love adventures. no matter what goes wrong, i feel free and alive and have not a care in the world. awesome evening. so so sweet.
so, katrina and james took a wrong turn on the way to pick me up, thus getting us about 20 minutes behind schedule. no worries, though, because james was definitely gonna make up time on the way. after cruising down the 407 for a while, the incessant doorlocking and flickering lights got on our nerves, so we pulled over and proceeded to open and then slam every door, including the trunk. no dice. the machine gun/microwave popcorn sound continued. we decided to be mature and ignore it. 10 minutes into driving on the qew, we started wondering if we were going the right way - there were no relevant signs, and we were using directions, not a map. just as james was about to pull over to get gas and ask directions, katrina noticed that the exit numbers were getting closer to the one we needed: christie street. sweetness itself.
and, oh, look! now exit #71 is the next one! it is 7:01 and we can just see the light at the end of the tunnel! we're driving in the far left lane when the van begins to make very clear the fact that it is dry. no gas. james manages to get it to the shoulder, and we coast for while. after some ado, we lock the car and start walking toward the off-ramp, knowing that sarah will be at tehillah, car in tow, and will surely be able to help. walking, walking, walking. a car pulled over and offered us a ride after a few minutes, and it turned out the church was 2 minutes' drive away! sweetness part deux!
ok, so we get to lakemount, and sarah shows up a few minutes later. we tell her all that's happened, and she drives us to a gas station. the gas costs 94 cents! but they don't have gas cans, so that's not gonna work. we find another service station, where katrina and james buy two gas cans and pay only 83 cents for gas. savings: sweetness returns.
we finally arrive at tehillah, only 45 minutes late. the worship is cool, God is cooler, and mark gives an ab-fab message that i'll recount in another post. when worship starts up again (by which i mean we started singing again . . . i kinda hope the worship ran throughout) the four of us are just whispering about how far away niagara falls is. sarah say 25 minutes. sweet action!
off the niagara falls we went. we took off around 9:30 and got there about 10 . . . proceeding to engage in the north american ritual known as "searching for reasonably priced parking that doesn't involve leaving the car in the next county." it is about this time that we begin to wonder why we brought both vehicles . . . but, never you mind. finally, we ditch sarah's van faaaar away and katrina drives us to $5 parking. sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.
apart from sarah, we're all starving. the cherries and pretzels we'd been munching on don't seem to constitute dinner. so before we actually go gawk at the falls, we duck into wendy's for some well-deserved grub. we get to the front of the line and hear those fatal words, "sorry, we don't take debit." BOTH of the atms in the vicinity are off-line. much frustration follows. nonetheless, we go and watch the beauty of falling water. i don't say it that way to minimize its beauty, but to point out a profound reality: something need not be complicated to be very very beautiful. sigh. the coloured lights are bouncing off the water as it crashes onto the rocks below, and we feel that we have finally achieved a goal we set out to accomplish. sweet success.
at this point, we'd given up on getting food in niagara falls proper, so we picked up katrina and james' car, drove to sarah, said a potential goodbye to sarah (in case we didn't find an appropriate place to eat between the falls and where our paths diverged) and . . . tried to find our way out. i will, in the future, complain less about the lack of much-needed signage in calgary. at least, when i complain i will not compare calgary to ontario. such comparison does nothing to further my point. after two or three false starts, we finally get on the right road and are soon in the warm embrace of queen elizabeth once again. wheeeee! how sweet it is to be loved by her.
we pass one or two service stops that have tim hortons because, obviously, we're holding out for a wendy's. the third stop has one! yayness itself! alas, it takes not debit. grrrr! they call this civilization?? the golden arches drive-thru, however, is more than happy to accept our money in any form, so we are soon fitted with assorted drinks and sandwiches, as well as fries. it was, as i expressed to my friends, like eating the holy grail. sweet sweet food.
we parted from sarah for real, and headed back on the road, our tummies happier. after several phone calls from family, and gathering up aaaaaaall my stuff, i finally got back to my parents' house. home sweet home.
i love adventures. no matter what goes wrong, i feel free and alive and have not a care in the world. awesome evening. so so sweet.
Monday, July 11, 2005
i have mine
do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?
do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?
do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?
do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?
do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?
do you have yours yet? do you have yours yet?
ok, how toronto am i?
as the most liberal person many of my alberta friends have ever met, when i read neely's comment (see below) i thought, "ok, i'll bite."
here's the deal:
You Know You're From Toronto When...
A really great parking spot can move you to tears.
not literally . . . but yeah, you get pretty excited. even if you're not driving :P
You can recommend about 3 good body piercing parlours.
yeah, no.
You make well over $100,000 and you still can't find a nice place to live.
not myself personally, but this could very well be true if you're looking for something in the old city of toronto. if you're open to boroughs, there are lots of lovely places.
You realize there are far more rainbow flags in the city than Canadian Flags.
FOR DARN SURE.
When the temperature rises above zero degrees, you yell "Woohooo! Patio weather!"
guilty as charged. i got bronchitis one year, and i'm sure the fact that i spent march break hanging out in 10 degree weather in a t-shirt helped that along.
You enjoy watching channel 47 multicultural TV
not the multiculti shows, but yes. AND i still know the song for that channel by heart! "47, in the evening - yes, we've got fun . . . "
You're guaranteed to know at least one person on every episode of Speaker's Corner.
myth. i've never known anyone on that show. just 'cause you're from toronto doesn't mean you know sue. i didn't know sue 'til i moved to alberta. i also don't know bob.
You haven't been to the CN Tower since you were six, but still have nightmares about that damn turbo elevator.
i was 12, but that elevator - though cool - is kinda . . . wrong.
You've had at least 3 bicycles stolen in the past 10 years.
4 in the last 12 years that i lived in toronto. between me and my sister.
You've partied with at least one of the members of The Kids in the Hall
nopes.
You've fantasized about having sex in Casa Loma
thanks for loading me up with that image . . .
At least 3 of your friends have moved to Vancouver
i can think of one, but i get the joke.
You turn your nose up at any establishment frequented by the S&M crowd. (Scarborough and Mississauga)
yeah, definitely a toronto snob that way.
You never, never, never swim in the lake
word! going in after a volleyball amounts to risking your life.
You know "The Beaches" are really called "The Beach", but still say "The Beaches" just to annoy all the nitwits who live there
didn't know that. fun!
You ever had a birthday party at the Organ Grinder or The Mad Hatter
sorry, no. never had a birthday party anywhere but at home.
You can say "world's tallest freestanding structure" ten times fast
can't say anything ten times fast.
You know the correct answer to "Where do shopping carts go to die?" is "The Don River"
so true! i saw a baby carriage in there once, too! no worries - the baby wasn't in it at the time.
You speak better Chinese than French
if only i'd applied myself . . . you know, i was basically in immersion!
The word "cabbagetown" doesn't strike you as particularily amusing
hey! that IS funny! didn't think of it 'til now!
Castle Frank subway station remains one of the great mysteries of the universe for you.
yeah, it confuses me. it's in some back alley somewhere!
You know what the bathrooms in the First Canadian Place are REALLY for
'k, now i'm curious.
You don't know where Fort York is, but have a vague recollection of being there in a past life
SO darn true.
You know the Demic's song "I Wanna Go To New York City" was intended as sarcasm, not a weekend getaway suggestion
never heard of it.
You know where to find Dim Sum, Sushi, Curry, Pad Thai and a dildo at 3 am on a weeknight
sushi, yes. the rest i've never sought out, to be honest. :P
For the last time, it's pronounced 'TRONNA'!
actually, i say it "TARANA" (how can something be pronounced with double N's? what does that sound like?)
You consider eye contact a sign of hostility and an invasion of your privacy.
hee. we all need therapy.
It takes you half an hour to get to work by TTC and you are the envy of all your friends.
indeed.
You mourned the death of the Spadina Bus.
it died?? before my time, prolly.
You know someone who went to high school with at least one member of The Barenaked Ladies or RUSH
no, but a philosopher king or two went to my high school . . . before my time. my sissy met him! gerald eaton, i think.
You laugh heartily at people who refer to highway four hundred and one.
i have NEVER heard anyone say it that way, and i'm pretty sure i'd assume they were kidding.
You've taken the vomit comit.
yeah, baby! tightest i've ever held my purse. and, occasionally, my breath.
You can manuver your bike across Queen st. without getting caught in the streetcar tracks.
never biked downtown.
You know the difference between souvlaki, moussaka and spanakoptia.
yups.
You can name at least three locations of The Beer Store that are open till 11 PM.
i can't even name three locations!
You have NEVER been to the Hard Rock Cafe
guilty.
You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Toronto.
as we speak. or . . . as i type and you read.
to be fair, most of these refer to the downtown core - the rectangle made by the two subway lines. while my mom and i were taking a walk through a ravine last week, i reflected that many people prolly miss out on the coolest stuff about this city. like the MASSIVE amounts of green space and the genuine cultural exchange. i also love the roads - you can all stop complaining about the dvp and the 401, 'cause calgary sucks for roads by comparison. and i like the way my hair is crazy curly when i'm here . . .
hey, don't get me wrong! as i walked home from the bus stop tonight, i missed my stars, and my mountains, and the dry air of calgary. and i missed my life there most of all. but toronto isn't the cheap kind of mosaic where you throw curry, dim sum, and sushi into a pot and serve it in a on-the-go granola bar so you can eat while you commute. there are streets i don't like - if i have to go down adelaide again on a saturday night, i may cry - but, for the most part, it's a really interesting city. more importantly, just like every other place on this here planet, it has some pretty neat people in it.
like my family. and my old church. and many of the people i went to high school with - some of whom i've forgotten and some of whom i've tried to forget, but most of whom i cherish in some way. as i've been cleaning my parents' basement i've found so many reminders of how precious my time here was. 14 years of my life were spent in this city - all over it. and while i don't see myself moving back any time soon . . . it's still special.
here's the deal:
You Know You're From Toronto When...
A really great parking spot can move you to tears.
not literally . . . but yeah, you get pretty excited. even if you're not driving :P
You can recommend about 3 good body piercing parlours.
yeah, no.
You make well over $100,000 and you still can't find a nice place to live.
not myself personally, but this could very well be true if you're looking for something in the old city of toronto. if you're open to boroughs, there are lots of lovely places.
You realize there are far more rainbow flags in the city than Canadian Flags.
FOR DARN SURE.
When the temperature rises above zero degrees, you yell "Woohooo! Patio weather!"
guilty as charged. i got bronchitis one year, and i'm sure the fact that i spent march break hanging out in 10 degree weather in a t-shirt helped that along.
You enjoy watching channel 47 multicultural TV
not the multiculti shows, but yes. AND i still know the song for that channel by heart! "47, in the evening - yes, we've got fun . . . "
You're guaranteed to know at least one person on every episode of Speaker's Corner.
myth. i've never known anyone on that show. just 'cause you're from toronto doesn't mean you know sue. i didn't know sue 'til i moved to alberta. i also don't know bob.
You haven't been to the CN Tower since you were six, but still have nightmares about that damn turbo elevator.
i was 12, but that elevator - though cool - is kinda . . . wrong.
You've had at least 3 bicycles stolen in the past 10 years.
4 in the last 12 years that i lived in toronto. between me and my sister.
You've partied with at least one of the members of The Kids in the Hall
nopes.
You've fantasized about having sex in Casa Loma
thanks for loading me up with that image . . .
At least 3 of your friends have moved to Vancouver
i can think of one, but i get the joke.
You turn your nose up at any establishment frequented by the S&M crowd. (Scarborough and Mississauga)
yeah, definitely a toronto snob that way.
You never, never, never swim in the lake
word! going in after a volleyball amounts to risking your life.
You know "The Beaches" are really called "The Beach", but still say "The Beaches" just to annoy all the nitwits who live there
didn't know that. fun!
You ever had a birthday party at the Organ Grinder or The Mad Hatter
sorry, no. never had a birthday party anywhere but at home.
You can say "world's tallest freestanding structure" ten times fast
can't say anything ten times fast.
You know the correct answer to "Where do shopping carts go to die?" is "The Don River"
so true! i saw a baby carriage in there once, too! no worries - the baby wasn't in it at the time.
You speak better Chinese than French
if only i'd applied myself . . . you know, i was basically in immersion!
The word "cabbagetown" doesn't strike you as particularily amusing
hey! that IS funny! didn't think of it 'til now!
Castle Frank subway station remains one of the great mysteries of the universe for you.
yeah, it confuses me. it's in some back alley somewhere!
You know what the bathrooms in the First Canadian Place are REALLY for
'k, now i'm curious.
You don't know where Fort York is, but have a vague recollection of being there in a past life
SO darn true.
You know the Demic's song "I Wanna Go To New York City" was intended as sarcasm, not a weekend getaway suggestion
never heard of it.
You know where to find Dim Sum, Sushi, Curry, Pad Thai and a dildo at 3 am on a weeknight
sushi, yes. the rest i've never sought out, to be honest. :P
For the last time, it's pronounced 'TRONNA'!
actually, i say it "TARANA" (how can something be pronounced with double N's? what does that sound like?)
You consider eye contact a sign of hostility and an invasion of your privacy.
hee. we all need therapy.
It takes you half an hour to get to work by TTC and you are the envy of all your friends.
indeed.
You mourned the death of the Spadina Bus.
it died?? before my time, prolly.
You know someone who went to high school with at least one member of The Barenaked Ladies or RUSH
no, but a philosopher king or two went to my high school . . . before my time. my sissy met him! gerald eaton, i think.
You laugh heartily at people who refer to highway four hundred and one.
i have NEVER heard anyone say it that way, and i'm pretty sure i'd assume they were kidding.
You've taken the vomit comit.
yeah, baby! tightest i've ever held my purse. and, occasionally, my breath.
You can manuver your bike across Queen st. without getting caught in the streetcar tracks.
never biked downtown.
You know the difference between souvlaki, moussaka and spanakoptia.
yups.
You can name at least three locations of The Beer Store that are open till 11 PM.
i can't even name three locations!
You have NEVER been to the Hard Rock Cafe
guilty.
You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Toronto.
as we speak. or . . . as i type and you read.
to be fair, most of these refer to the downtown core - the rectangle made by the two subway lines. while my mom and i were taking a walk through a ravine last week, i reflected that many people prolly miss out on the coolest stuff about this city. like the MASSIVE amounts of green space and the genuine cultural exchange. i also love the roads - you can all stop complaining about the dvp and the 401, 'cause calgary sucks for roads by comparison. and i like the way my hair is crazy curly when i'm here . . .
hey, don't get me wrong! as i walked home from the bus stop tonight, i missed my stars, and my mountains, and the dry air of calgary. and i missed my life there most of all. but toronto isn't the cheap kind of mosaic where you throw curry, dim sum, and sushi into a pot and serve it in a on-the-go granola bar so you can eat while you commute. there are streets i don't like - if i have to go down adelaide again on a saturday night, i may cry - but, for the most part, it's a really interesting city. more importantly, just like every other place on this here planet, it has some pretty neat people in it.
like my family. and my old church. and many of the people i went to high school with - some of whom i've forgotten and some of whom i've tried to forget, but most of whom i cherish in some way. as i've been cleaning my parents' basement i've found so many reminders of how precious my time here was. 14 years of my life were spent in this city - all over it. and while i don't see myself moving back any time soon . . . it's still special.
Sunday, July 10, 2005
i can vouch for this
a quick update: going to the gym continues to be the main event of my day . . . which is nice. i actually look forward to it. it's also introduced me to the strangest tv shows that i would never elect to watch apart from the fact that they serve as the only distraction for the loud groans of my calf muscles. (yeah, you try going backwards on the eliptical. it buuuuuurns!) two such shows are untold stories of the er and oblivious. quite a combination, i know. but they're super interesting. and entertaining. and don't involve muscles screaming at you. so, yeah. i like them.in unrelated news, i'm about to finish my fifth agatha christie novel in two weeks. so much murder! those familiar with her writing will understand me when i say this: there's no possible way to solve these mysteries! you're always out of the loop. no wonder that crazy belgian always solves it before me - he keeps me in the dark! SO unfair!
ok, i have to go clean the basement. not kidding. tales of nostalgia to come.
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