Sunday, July 30, 2006

yin yang

i've always known that pheebs has been a bit of a different sort of doggie. not too much of social girl in the sense of playing with other doggies. she loves her sister zoe, though. they are the best of friends. they are the yin and yang.
zoe is sucky and loveable to everyone, especially strangers. she's a overly-energtic soul. she is 30 kg of solid muscle that think she is 3kg of fluff. she loves her pats, her chew toys and lives to roll around all over the place. she is a brand new spirit here on this earth and experiencing things for the very first time. she is a lover.
my pheebs is my girl. she never leaves my side. she follows me around and protects me like a watchful mother. she loves her mumma, her territory and lives to guard and protect everything that is dear to her. she is a wise and old soul that has been around this place more than once. at least that's what i see in her eyes. she is a fighter.
when they meet new doggies it's always the same thing. zoe is immediately up for play and goofing. she's right in there trying to learn the secret handshake and trying to find her way into the clubhouse. pheebs is always a bit more cautious, a bit more apprehensive and she usually ends up being the one on the sidelines. and true to her fur colour, she becomes the red-headed step-sister. poor pheebs? i often wonder what she thinks of these situationa and if she might actually feel like she's on the outside looking in. i really don't think she is. she's happy to sit and observe and watch and not be a part of the three-ring circus that usually ensues once zoe enters the spotlight. pheebs is indeed a type A personality, but can easily sit back and allow someone else to be the centre of attention if the situation calls for it. i think she's becomes more like me every day. or... i am more like a dog than i realize...

Thursday, July 27, 2006

sjp, why do you haunt me?

typing on a laptop has that sort of "sex in the city" feeling. and before you all gasp in shock, no - i was not ever a fan of the show. but it (laptop) has that sort of urban-esque-yuppy feeling. i am not certain what to make of it... i feel very unyuppy-ish, normally. maybe i'll just get over it once i have evil death metal playing from the mp3 player... \m/

retail therapy

i dont think that i have had much trauma this year. well, i mean, things *could* be worse, i suppose. they could *always* be worse. so the need for retail therapy has been rather minimal. now, that's the need. the desire is yet another story. if i were to list all the things that i have bought within this calendar year, you would probably roll your eyes and proceed to tell me how excessive i am and how there is really no need for one person to possess so many fun toys, gadgets and gizmos. however, i see it this way: i work hard for the things that i have and ive waited a long time to purchase some of the things i have bought this year. so... now let me introduce to you to the newest member of my elecronic family...



Monday, July 24, 2006

two ships...

i have these dreams. and if any of you know me, you know that i dream super-bizarre things. but these dreams are quite real to me. these dreams make me relive, over and over, the feelings, thoughts, experiences that i had so many years ago. now, i don't believe in "meant to be's" i believe in opportunities and the power of timing. i think we make and choose our own fate rather than some mysterious force finding us and bringing us, by the hand, to the places we ought to be. but i am a person that wonders sometimes about the "what-if's". these dreams just give that one what-if a bit more meat. now, the whole psychology behind theses thoughts is well understood, but its weird how the mind can make all rational thought take flight in the presence of certain memories whether conscious or sub-conscious. life has a few funny twists in it and i have to say that although i've missed the boat on a few of them i have caught my fair share of ferries that have taken me to places i didn't even think i'd ever go. it's a matter of opportunity and timing and a little something called courage. ferries tend to only stay in port for a short period of time. you blink and hesitate at the wrong moment and you could easily miss a ride to an amazing destination. but who knows. sometimes we end up hopping on the wrong one and taking a small detour, perhaps something we shouldn't have experienced or didn't want to experience. either way, good or bad, an adventure or misadventure, at least you're taking a chance. these dreams remind me of a chance i didn't take. maybe it's a reminder to be grateful for the things i presently have; obviously, if different choices were made i certainly wouldn't be where i am today. maybe it's a reminder of something that i completely missed out on and should have sunk myself into and hung on to for dear life. or maybe it's just me reliving feelings and experiences that were held close to my heart and were very much a part of who i was at the time and who i have become today. whatever it is, i'm so thankful that i can dream about it; even if it isn't my reality, it at least reminds of a time when it was once very very real. yes, that ship has sailed, but it's nice to know we still pass each other in the night...

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

coooooookieeeeee!

I am starting to feel the need to be a hermit.
And no, I don't mean the cookie.






(although they do look look delicious, don't they??)

Must.
Snap.
Out.
Of.
This.
Feeling.

I have BBQs to plan and BBQs are NOT what hermits do!
I have shopping to do and shopping is NOT what hermits do!

It's summer dammit!! Well, I could do w/o summer crowds... EVERYWHERE... Maybe that's what it is. I am being bombarded with crowds! Calgary is over a million people and it just grew SOOO fast. Maybe I'm just feeling a little claustrophobic. I should just have a cookie and chill out, eh?

Sunday, July 16, 2006

Cute AmmyNalls!

You Are A: Bear Cub!

bear cubBears are strong and independent creatures who roam in the forest in search of food. Bears are usually gentle, but anger one and be prepared for their full fury! You're tough, you won't back down from a fight, you have a bit of a temper -- classic attributes of a bear. Intelligent and resourceful, though lazy at times, you are a fascinating creature of the wild.

You were almost a: Pony or a Kitten
You are least like a: Chipmunk or a MouseWhat Cute Animal Are You?

Friday, July 14, 2006

Notes for the Week...

-the torture is almost over. the 10 days that is stampede is finally gone. i flexed @ work today b/c i just couldn't handle another day of western *fun*.

-i got a dear friend of mine to join up @ Curves© and we've worked out together this week. today i really felt it in my legs and my obliques. imagine finding out you have muscles somewhere you forgot you had.

-i got in contact with a college friend who is visiting from china and we made plans to go to the zoo in a couple of weeks! i have a love/hate relationship with the zoo. i love seeing the animals but i also hate the confinement. i always end up leaving quite sad and with plans to set them free in the middle of the night.

-i have been using my super-size mug from starbucks. i know, not necessarily noteworthy, but it is definitely among the "one-of-the-cute-things-i-have-purchased-recently" lists.

-the best thing about stampede is pancake breakfasts! we had our company pancake breakfast on wednesday, a supposed "private function". a workmate and i were sitting there eating breakfast and these three blokes sit across from us, after a while one transWESTite says to another "i wonder where all these people work". lol. ass.

-this is the time of year we get amazing thunderstorms. the skies opened up this weekand dumped an insane amount of water in certain regions of the city. flash floods happened, roofs caved in from the weight of the hailstones, vehicles were drown in intersections. don't mess with Mother Nature, yo!

-i saw Pirates of the Caribbean on the weekend past. WOW! you all know how i feel about men in eyeliner. *drool* it is indeed a swashbuckler! *Jack Sparrow drops from a long long fall... friend leans in and says "oh please, that would have killed him!" i said "yes, it would have. however, i don't think undead pirates with squids for faces exist either."*

-i'm looking forward to the weekend and maybe i'll get some curtains or blinds installed in my rec-room; go out to a movie; clean the house and relax in the sun a bit!

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Syd Barrett

January 6, 1946 - July 11, 2006

Wish You Were Here

So, so you think you can tell Heaven from Hell,
blue skies from pain.
Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail? A smile from a veil?
Do you think you can tell?

And did they get you trade your heroes for ghosts?
Hot ashes for trees? Hot air for a cool breeze?
Cold comfort for change? And did you exchange
a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage?

How I wish, how I wish you were here.
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl,
year after year,
running over the same old ground. What have we found?
The same old fears,
wish you were here.

happy burfday bloggy!

well, today is my blog's first birthday...
its hard to believe i have been blogging for a year! well, more difficult to believe that i actually kept it up...
the question use to come up...
"do you blog?"
the answer used to be...
"pffft! no!"
HAHA...
now i just say...
"what do you think?"
thanks to blogger for my own little niche on the 'net.
thanks to the people who come and read what i post... you know i love you all...

here's to another year!...

be kind, rewind (read some old posts)...

Sunday, July 09, 2006

im feeling a bit like dorothy...

it's that time of year again...
the calgary STAMPEDE...
the transWESTites come out in full fashion; the downtown core smells like a mixture b/w pancakes and cow patties; people's vocabulary is reduced to "ya-hoo" and "ya'll"; country music leaks from all known sound systems... this is when the most tourists come through calgary and are sadly given a glimpse into what normal life is NOT like in the city. however, western pride and western heritage is what causes this odd phenomenon in an otherwise corporate city. yes, unfortunately corporate. i was recently visiting my parents in the small town where i grew up a few weeks ago. its a smaller town with an estimate population of 6,000 people, quite wealthy in resources, nature and so many other things... and of course... SLOW. what a difference in atmosphere. it seems that even in the smaller towns around calgary are a bit of the hustle-bustle mentality. moreso b/c i think instead, we have to flock to the urban centres to "make our fortunes", "get ahead in life" or whatever it is that you want to call it and choose cold hard concrete towers over small-town pleasures. former urbanites have started infiltrating smaller communities around the city b/c of 1.) tired of city living or 2.) more affordable living. at any rate, being 5 ­½ hours away from this place was AMAZING. we're talking about a town where everything seems to move in slow-motion. where people can actually take time during lunch hour to go home and let out the dog and throw in a load of laundry. where, when i was a kid, we used to go for a quick swim @ lunch @ the lake b/c it was a 3 minute drive from the high school. where someone driving 40km/h is considered a maniac. this is a place where i couldn't wish myself out of fast enough when i was growing up. now, more often, i think very fondly of it and maybe hope to return to that kind of living some day. for now, i'm in a city where getting dressed up like a cowboy for 10 days is the highlight of the year for most folks. but at least this time of the year people are more friendly than they usually are. *clicks heels three times*... there's no place like home... there's no place like home... (maybe in 10 years)...

why would you even want to be rushed in a place this beautiful?

Thursday, July 06, 2006

It's a hobby... Part IV

Antheraea Polyphemus (Male).
Found while camping in Northern Alberta. June 2006.
He's so pretty!! Follow the Wikipedia Link to find out more.
I named him Fuzz.

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

It's a hobby... Part III


Lake Louise June 2006.

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

It's a hobby... Part II


Glacial snow @ Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies. June 2006.

Sunday, July 02, 2006

It's a hobby... Part I



toronto tulips

Saturday, July 01, 2006

happy burfday moxie!

today is moxie's 9th birthday!
i adopted her from the SPCA at the age of 6 weeks when i lived with the evil overlords I&S. very odd folks who didn't clean litter-boxes of their own and had one of their own cats on kitty prozac.
moxie had to grow up mean and tough and now she is the big sister to two crazy-ass dawgies...
i just had her hair buzzed off! i thought for certain she would be hiding for the next week or so but she pranced around rather proudly displaying her lion-cut... she cracks me up! i'll post a pic of her when she doesn't look so lex-luthor-ish.
this pic is taken of her when she was just a wee-kitty... look at the fuzzy ears!! $#&@$)(*()@!! isn't she CUTE???
moxie loves attention and is a complete and utter slut. she gives lap dances to anyone! (even if they don't want one!) her favourite place to play when she was a kitty was in the bathtub and her favourite toy, even today is a plastic bag. she's got issues. she loves to lick plastic. i figure its her only vice, so i let her have it...
happy burfday you grouchy ol' kiddy!

Happy Canada Day

Happy 139th Canada!!
Here's a link to the Parliament Hill webcam!
The celebration in Canada's capital is going on right now.

im such a patriot, yo!