How do you spell relief?

Spontaneous healing anyone? My back is pain free this morning! Maybe it was the aqua fit or the stretching or the Arnica gel or the Robaxacet or the way I slept, maybe all of those things together but I am not in any pain today. Thank God! This little problem of mine can get very bad, so bad that I have limited movement for a long time. Not this time though. That means I can keep working out and strengthening my core so this doesn't happen again. I have a much better understanding about what is happening physically and some tools to work through it now so it doesn't have to lay me out for weeks at a time anymore.

Last night Jessie and I played crazy eights upstairs while the boys had a band practice downstairs. It's nice to be serenaded by live music when we are just hanging out! This house couldn't be more perfect for our needs. SM and Jessie and I are all in separate bands and Jessie's son is now teaching bass, all in our downstairs studio. It's awesome to have a place to play where you don't have to set everything up every time. We have a sound system and a drum set set up all the time so we can just plug in and get to work.

The garden is exploding with hydrangias and the daisies are just starting to open. The sun is shinning and it's Friday.

Have a fabulous day!

Guess what?

Well, I'm still here just recovering from a bunch of stupid stuff.
We have only had intermittent internets since last Friday and the guy who came by to fix it today just did a temporary fix running a cable through my kitchen. This is truly The House of Cords, Cables and Wires. One of the joys of living in an older house. On a side note, the guy that came to fix the internets showed up when I was in the shower, luckily Superman was home to let him in. The first thing he asked was if he could use our bathroom and then tried to walk in on me when I was drying off. Eek! I grabbed my stuff and took it into the bedroom while he was outside checking the connection so when he came back in he asked to use the bathroom again. When he was done I went in to continue getting ready and it turned out that he had been busy laying some cable in there and smelled up the whole bathroom. WTF? He could have at least sprayed some air freshener in there. Ugh. I was rather appalled but SM said I should give the guy a break, how long should he have to hold it? Just a bit longer would have been nice.
My camera is on the fritz and I had a root canal today. I also have searing sciatic pain that started on Monday and seems to be getting worse. I have been working out anyway, doing aqua fit and it doesn't hurt at all when I'm in the water. I wish I could be in the water all the time.
Superman got laid off from his job about a month ago and is doing all he can to find another. That's a bit stressful.
So , there you have it. That's what's happening here.
One more thing, I'm thinking of starting a whole new blog. This account has never shown my updates to my subscribers and I think it's ready for a name/style change. I just can't seem to fix it. Hopefully I can transfer all the content of this blog onto a new one and start fresh. I tried to change my background colour and lost my entire blog roll, among other things.
There you have it. This could be better but they could definitely be worse too. I am trying to be grateful for what I have and work towards what I need.
I'll try to come here more.
xox

Can you take more garden pictures?

Well another perfect weekend has come and gone. The weather has been so amazing. I heard we have had 18 days of continuous sun here in rainy Vancouver and it feels more like mid summer than spring. On Friday I did a show at a country fair with Superman's band and on Saturday I just camped out in the sunny yard and enjoyed myself. Later in the afternoon my dear friend Robin popped in with refreshments and her usual good humour. We lazed in the sun sipping cocktails and reminiscing about our trip to Mexico last year. Later, the boys showed up and we played some bocche ball and badminton and ordered in some yummy Greek food for dinner. A day well spent and in bed by 11. Poor Superman now has the horrible cold that Jessie and I had so we are giving him lots of sympathy. He likes that.

Today was another sun day. Jessie and I had all kinds of plans for gardening but after we pruned the Mock Orange tree(thanks to Robin for identifying it) and filled some vases we just had to sit and admire our work. Yes, I took pictures.

Jessie made SM and I the best Indian dinner this evening with homemade chutney and riata, butter chicken, basmati rice and poppadoms. Super delicious!! While she was preparing our dinner I made a rhubarb and strawberry pie using rhubarb from her brothers garden. Yummy summer flavour and we are all just so stuffed with goodness.

I took this picture of the Mock Orange from inside the garage.

Here she is against the blue, blue sky.

So pretty!

The Hydrangeas have even started blooming. This is the first flower from the largest bush in the yard. I sure hope there are still lots of flowers left for the wedding in September.

Here's the wall of roses and there are so many more blooming every minute. I can't even describe how amazing the yard smells.

Here is a little bouquet of mock orange flowers on the dining room table and a huge bunch that is on the mantle. Ummm, I hope these aren't the reason Superman keeps sneezing.

How does your garden grow?

Everything is blooming like crazy and I just have to show you. It's all about the garden for me this summer and I have been blown away by the beauty that is in our back yard.

Here is the window box from Jesse and Martin. Makes me so happy every time I open the door to go outside.

Can you spot the two ladybugs?

This is our fabulous Smoke Tree! When we moved in we thought it was just a dead tree, it was completely bare. Now it is putting on an amazing display. I LOVE the Smoke Tree!

Here is a shot of our wall of Wild Roses. They are breathtaking and smell so beautiful. For every bloom you see there are 10 more waiting to burst open. The blooms are so delicate that they only last about a day and then sprinkle their petals onto the grass below.

This tree just started blooming and has the most delicate snowy white flowers. Does anyone know what it's called?

The Portulaca is growing like crazy in the front planter. My Mom told me that this was my Grandmas favourite flower. I love them too!

There you go. That's the garden update. I know there are many more surprises waiting for us and we have tons of Daisies just getting ready to open. I will keep you updated.

Enjoy your day and take some time to smell the roses!

I plan?

The wedding invitations have been sent to the printers and I am all aflutter. This weekend has been full of wedding thoughts and plans. I am meeting some resistance with Superman but as he told me this morning, "Don't stop telling me about things but don''t take it the wrong way if I act weird." I actually get that. It's all a little strange and I know he's on board but when I mention things like vows and wedding cakes he gets a little jittery. I am still finding it cute at the moment but hoping he comes around. Soon.
So many details and so little time now. We are down to double digits here, last week started the 100 day countdown! Food, cake, lighting, dress, suit, rentals and Dear God let the sun shine.
Please forgive me if I act confused from time to time.
Wish me luck my friends. i might just need it.

Have you seen The Queen?

I would like to present Queen Peony!!

Please scroll down to watch her bloom.....

Isn't she beautiful?

Another wedding??

Check THIS out!

I know I'm not the only one who is upset by this. I mean, after all these years Archie is getting married and guess who he chose? That's right, he chose the raven haired rich bitch Veronica. I know that Betty and Veronica are the same face with different colour hair so we know it's not a physical thing. I guess it turns out Archie has a thing for girls who treat him and everyone else like shit, are spoiled rotten and are just not very nice. Oh yes, and she's rich too.

I am so disapointed that Archie didn't choose Betty. Don't you think that girls around the world would have felt just a little bit happier to know that being a kind and considerate person actually does pay off in the end?

That being said, I never really thought that Archie was that big of a catch anyway. He's kind of stupid, he's not that good looking and he played with Betty's affections for years.

Maybe Betty is the winner here. She can finally go find a real man (or woman) and marry so she can loose her virginity too. After all they are 16 years old.

I just can't quite figure out the message that is being given here.

I wonder who it will be?

God no, not Reggie!!

Is it time?

Lorna and I went for a pedicure the other day and randomly chose a place with lots of chairs so we could just walk in and sit together. I chose a really pretty green colour for my toes. It looked so pretty in the bottle but when it was on my toes it was just awful. It was way more iridescent than I thought and the under tone shining back was actually orange. It made my toes feel sad and kind of ill. I could barely look at them. I repainted them pink last night. Much better.

I also had a haircut yesterday. That was way, way overdue. I was trying to grow it out for the wedding but my hairdresser pointed out that hair grows about 1/2 an inch per month so in the next 4 months it will grow 2 inches. Big deal. I am wearing my hair a little longer now than I used to but I have to say, growing it out isn't really going to work for me. My hair really only works well when it's short. For everything else we have wigs.

I also had my eyebrows waxed yesterday so all in all I am feeling like the maintenance is finally caught up with and I should have one of those stickers put on me, like when you get your oil changed. Service needed again in 6 weeks or 1000 miles, whichever comes first.

Wasn't that a party?

Best. Weekend. Ever. We had it. Our favourite friends from the island came to visit this weekend and we had such a great time! They are both fine musicians so there was much jamming and joy had by all. They got here in the early afternoon on Saturday and since it was lovely weather we sat outside in the yard all afternoon. We barbecued and had some margaritas and lots of laughs and then the party really started in earnest. Superman wanted a big jam party so I let him take care of the invites and he did a very good job. At the peak of the party we figure there was about 40 people here! This house is just right for big parties and it never felt out of control or overly crowded. In fact I feel much more confidant that 50-60 wedding guests will work out just fine for us here. I must say I feel relieved. Among our many friends that did come over were some of the best country picken' musicians in town and at one point I counted three stand up basses and dozens of guitars, at least one banjo and an acordian, it was so exciting to have so many amazing players in our home. The mood was just happy and everybody was thrilled to be outside for the first decent weekend evening of the year. Happy, happy people and they all went home by 3 or so so there were no overly drunk hangers ons either. Sunday morning we awoke to a sunny, gorgeous day and ended up back in the yard. After another BBQ the instruments came out again and much bluegrassing ensued. We just played music and sang songs all afternoon and then ordered in some amazing Thai food for dinner, then more jamming. Blissful times for all I think and I can't wait to do more of the same all summer long. I hope my neighbours like music.

Can you feel it?

I'm here. Have been taking a little break but I am fine.
The sun is shinning, it's the Friday of a long weekend and we have some dear friends coming into town this weekend! Tomorrow night we are finally going to have that house warming party we've been talking about since we moved in and I can't wait.
Jessie and I bought a bunch of flowers and did some planting last weekend. I have never really done that before and it was really fun. I picked up a gardening bible and we have been spending a good amount of time trying to learn about the plants that are already here and how to care for the ones we bought. So much to know. I found a handyman on Craigslist and he is working on fixing our bbq and the back porch light so we should be ready to rock by tomorrow. Tonight we are off to The Superstore for party goodies and yummy food and SM has a band practice here at the house. Is it too early to start drinking? I know it is but I can't wait till the end of the day.
I got pretty sick last week and I have been such a good girl, just taking it easy and trying to feel better.
It's been a long hard winter and Spring has already brought some sad times but I am so open to the joy that is coming, I think we all are.
Our wedding plans are ticking right along. I have the invitations being designed right now, the dress is also being designed and my caterer is popping by this weekend to have a look at the yard and facilities. I still have tons to do but have enlisted the help of Lorna as my Maid Of Honour to help me get it all done. I need help with all the little details for sure.
I'm looking forward. I am excited by the prospects. Bring it on.

How Blue?

Yesterday I went to see my Mom and we had an early Mother's Day. It was so nice, we started talking about wedding plans and such and I told her I wanted old glass on my tables and the next thing you know we had uncovered her fabulous blue glass collection. There is a little bit of everything there from old Bromo Seltzer bottles and perfume bottles, old Noxema jars hand blown balls and squares, birds, eggs and tall vases. I have always loved this glass and I think it will look so pretty on the tables in the yard with blooms popping out everywhere.

My Mom collects a few different kinds of glass. She has pink glass and red glass and milk glass it looks so pretty all over her house. She knows just how to group it together and it never looks cluttered and dusty. The blue glass was all tucked away though and I think it was time to dust it off and let it shine. I felt bad just leaving it all there for my Mom to figure out what to do with it all until we need it in September. She'll probably enjoy looking at it for a couple of days before she tucks it away

She also pulled up this little couple who may just have to be spruced up for another go around. They haven't done a lick of work since 1961 and they look like they are ready to party.

We also looked at her guestbook and all the cards they were given and who gave them what wedding gifts. Then looked at the original bill for her wedding invitations and napkins, 75 invitations= $14.00 and some change. All things being relative it felt like lot of money back then I think.

I need to focus on what is ahead and happier times but it's nice to remember the past and how it all started.

Thanks Mom.

So, I need to plan a wedding. It's good!

Sorrow

Yesterday Treice passed away.
She passed at 12:25 in the afternoon.
I was called shortly after and by the time I got to their house there were close friends and family starting to gather. I was able to see her again and say goodbye. It was an intense day.
There are so many details but I still don't feel like I can articulate what it was like. I can only say that in true T fashion I was made to feel like I belonged there and I was part of her family too. We all did. It was her wish that we would gather to say goodbye .
Much sadness and tears, laughter and stories, lots of hugs. We all just stayed, there was nowhere else to be and it felt right.
When they came to take her away we all stood together holding hands, watching her go including her little boy Max. We all cried and Max asked if he could look out the window to see her go.
It broke my heart.

You can read her story here. http://treicebacks.blogspot.com/

I will miss my friend so much but I am grateful that she can finally rest in peace.

That's all I can say about it today.

Do you know true terror?

So, THIS happened!

Jessie and I went to Canadian Tire today to do some long awaited stuff shopping for yard thinks and such. We also needed to buy a new lawnmower as the landlord had promised a new one in the lease. We decided to go to the new Canadian Tire at 7th and Cambie since the road work is pretty much done down there and you can finally get around a bit. We parked in the rooftop parking area and walked in to the store. I will admit we were pretty stupefied by all the shiny lawn furniture and assorted yard accessories. When we first walked in we saw some really nice fire pits for the yard and we kind of fantasized about how cool it would be to have one. When we got to the place that they were stacked on the shelf it looked like they might be on sale. I grabbed the big box and stuck the UPC code under one of those price check thingies and sure enough it was half price. The regular price was $99 and it was on for $49.99! Well shoot, I'd buy it.

We piled all our purchases into a couple of buggies and eventually went to check out. They have a self serve check which involved several episodes of a clerk coming over to help us continue, much lifting boxes and finding codes and other pain in the ass stuff until finally we were checked through.

We piled the stuff into the car, swung through the Wendy's drive through and headed on home. Once we got back to the yard we decided to sit in the sun and eat our lunch and then unpack all of the goodies from the car. When I grabbed the box for the outdoor fire pit (some assembly required) I noticed there was a hole in the back of the box. I took one look and recognised it right away. Only one thing makes a hole like that. Rodents.

After I started to cut the box open we could really see all of the damage, tons of chewed up styrofoam and shredded paper and plastic and to our relief, small droppings from a mouse, not a rat. We started picking the pieces of the fire pit out of the box when it happened. Mouse running around in box! I screamed like a little girl and ran the opposite way and the mouse started running towards Jessie who was kind of frozen in place but no less freaked out than me. The mouse headed straight for the stairwell towards Jessie's apartment door, luckily it was closed or it would have run straight in. So now we are just shitting ourselves trying to think of what to do.

By this time Superman had come out to see what was going on and while him and Jessie made some sort of plan I decided to call Canadian Tire and see what they had to say. The first guy I spoke to in the outdoor living department responded by saying "Holy Shit, no way! He suggested I bring it back for a refund but I told him I wasn't touching any of it, it was full of mouse shit and urine, you could see it on everything. I asked to speak to the manager and when I told him what happened he said, "Jesus Christ!" He suggested I call pest control they would be happy to pay for it. By this time I could tell the the mouse wasn't going anywhere and had wedged itself between two layers of rugs. I told him that it looked like we would be able to catch/kill it and we wouldn't need pest control so he told me to bring in the receipt and he would give me a full refund but I could keep the fireplace. So, free fireplace, that's cool.

Superman conducted some rather gruesome maneuvers involving his big Dayton boots and a garden hoe which resulted in the death by squishing for Mr. Mouse. I hid behind Jessie the whole time prancing in place like a prized pony.

This is a picture of the box with all the nest materials and delicious styrofoam, mouse shit and mouse pee. Gross.

This is where he ran and eventually lost his life to a well timed boot heel.

This is where he is now along with the two mats he was rolled up in.

This is the nasty bag of styro feces and pee pee that was left in the box.

Bottom line, Jessie and I were traumatized for a couple of hours and now we have no faith in our ability to handle any type of stress or excitement ever again. That mouse was in the box when I lifted it in the store put it through the checkout and rode home with us in the car. I'm not scared of spiders and insects but rodents do me in.

Tomorrow it's back to Canadian Tire for our refund and possibly a dry cleaning bill because Jessie may or may not have peed her pants a little.

Now excuse me while I go wash my hands again and try to recover from the adrenalin rush I just experienced.

I wonder if I should sue?

Modern convenience?

http://www.cleanistry.com/2009/04/earth-day-guilt-trip/
I thought I would re-post this link from Modern Gear TV all about dishwashers and hand washing and the amount of water used. Surprising results.
I forgot to wish the Earth a happy day. Happy Earth Day to you all too!

Who do you love?

My Mom and Dad came to town for a visit today and it was so good to see them! It was fun showing them the new house and having Mom take a tour through the garden with me so I could figure out what has to be done out there. We had a yummy lunch and took a little drive around the neighbourhood to see all the pretty flowers and buds. They also brought me this cute little table that fits perfectly in the kitchen. It has a fold down table top so I can adjust it to any size I need. The cool folding chairs the old owners left us work really well with it too. My Mom brought me some of my old photos, some I would like to scan and show you one day. She also brought me home made buns and hand made cards from my niece that are super cute, some candles, some red glass candle globes a pottery ring to put flowers in and a crystal heart candle holder. All in all it was such a great day. I miss my Mom and Dad a lot sometimes but we always enjoy each others company when we are together. I'm a lucky girl.

Here or there?

I didn't do much this weekend , just hung around the house. I enjoy that more than most things these days. I am so loving living here. I took some time out on Sunday afternoon to get some things sorted and organised. I brought up this old dresser from downstairs to put in my dining room and now I have a place to put all of my papers and other assorted crap. I think I had to live with things the way they were for a while to see where the piles were forming. Now there's a place for everything and everything in it's place.

I have also changed a bunch of my art around to try to find the perfect home for each piece. I think I am getting close. I moved a mirror to a spot directly across from my front door and I was positive that it was bad feng shui so I looked it up. I turns out that having a mirror facing your front door can ruin your reputation. I can't risk that because I am still new in this neighbourhood. I still have neighbours on one side of us that won't make eye contact. I'll win them over yet.

Just being a homebody right now. I'm off to spend the day with T. I understand she is very weak. We will just "be" together for a while today. These times are both scary and precious.

I had no intention of taking such a long break from the blog, it just happened.

On another note, one of the girls from our "T- Team" took it upon herself to send an email around to raise some cash for T's family. Mostly so her husband could stay home from work and care for her in these final days. There is something very wrong with the system we have for compassionate care in BC. Financially there is very little help available for someone in the family to stay home from work and care for a dying loved one. When you think of all of the money that is not being spent by having her hospitalized it would be nice to think that we could support the caregiver better. Of course friends and family have opened their hearts once more and it looks like he will be able to leave work now. People can be so awesome.

What looks like a penis but isn't?

I just had to get a shot of this. I have been driving by this apartment complex for the last few weeks and it totally cracks me up. Lorna says I have the sense of humour of a 12 year old boy. I tend to agree. But, come on! I have a feeling this gardener is male but I could be wrong. I just can't believe that at some point someone didn't think that pruning the bushes like this would just look like a huge line of cocks and balls. Is it just me??? Or are they happy to see me? It gives a whole new meaning to the term twig and berries.

Behold Bone-Henge!

You heart your WHAT?

I managed to shoot this picture yesterday as I was stopped at a light. I have edited the photo to protect the guy but geez. Yes, the thing hanging off his rear view mirror says I Heart My Penis. I am surprised I haven't seen this on t-shirts and bumper stickers before. Don't all guys love their penises? I believe that they do. Good for you guy! Now the tough part is finding someone else to love his penis too.

Good luck with the little fella!

How cool is this??

Yesterday I went to Winners/Homesense and had a good look around. It's tempting to spend money on household things now that we are in the new house and there is so much room. I don't really need a lot though and I need to save my money for the wedding so I didn't get much. I picked up a cookie sheet, a pair of pants and this pretty baking dish. I just love the colour and it's a perfect size for our household of two plus whoever. I made a yummy Shepherds Pie and invited a friend to share, she brought a delicious dessert. We had a nice evening as she also brought her big floppy, puppy dog over. I really like dogs and Cooper is no exception but I sure can see how much work they are and how much happiness they bring.

I also picked up these cool ice cube trays that make an acoustic guitar a electric guitar and a bass! I couldn't wait to fill them up and pop them out of the silicone trays. They look really cool, they are quite big and you use them in your drinks instead of ice cubes. We were thinking they would look great if we made them with iced tea or something red or blue. Easily amused, we are.

I started this post this morning and now I'm finishing it after dinner. We had the leftover Shepherd's pie with homemade biscuits and had fresh fruit for dessert. Just in case you were wondering. What did you have for your Tuesday dinner or supper or whatever you call it?

We are starting to plan the wedding, we talked about it during dinner. I think we've come up with the style of wedding we want, now we better get going. I will share details as they emerge.

Are you feeling it?

Six o'clock on a Friday. That might be my most favourite time of the week. The sun is still shining in the yard, the buds are popping.

This is the view from my computer.

I've made myself a yummy Caesar and the dinner is in the oven. This weekend holds no real firm plans beyond playing music and hanging out with friends. Juicey and her boy and I went to The Superstore this morning and stocked up on good food for the week. Her son helped me pack my groceries in to the house, just to be nice. God! I knew there was a reason I should have had kids. I think I might just have to borrow J's kids. There already fully formed well adjusted humans and so much cooler than me.

I did make it over to the coast the other day. Here's a shot from the ferry taken from my drivers seat. With a parking spot on the ferry like this why would I want to get out of the car?? I didn't.

I did a little work and then hit the pub for a beer and a bite of food. Good food, good beer, good company. I left there and headed over to my other friends place where we watched the new James Bond movie. I highly recommend it. Had another great visit with my dear friends and hit the sack. When I awoke it was April Fools Day and I sure thought someone was having one over on me. My friend works in the film industry and when I accused him of creating some sort of movie effect he assured me that it was real fucking snow I was looking at. Not cool.
I headed back to the city early in the afternoon. Confused.

I had a visit from my friend Karin today too, she came by to do some shopping in my store and she also brought me a present! It's a Christmas/Easter gift or something like that. Karin loves giving gifts and I love getting gifts so we get along pretty well. She gave me this funky purple Japanese tea pot that I had once admired when I was with her, a beautiful tin of Indian Nimbu tea (Darjeeling Tea with Citrus and Caramel) I can't wait to try, and this super cute green , felt bag with cool dingle balls. A thoughtful gift from a thoughtful person. It was great to see her today!

I choose to focus on all that is positive these days. My life is far from perfect and the illness of my close friend shadows everything I do right now. Now more than ever I need to absorb as much love and joy as I can so I have the strength to give it all back.

What are your plans this weekend? Hope it's all good.

LOVE, xox