should i stay or should i go?

Current mood:ponderous

I realised today that the Louis Comfort Tiffany exhibit is finishing at the Seattle Art Museum on Tuesday. This is a problem. I really, really want to see that exhibit, but it's, like, a bad weekend to do a last minute trip to the US. I mean, I have my passport so that's not the problem. And I still have some US cash lying around. I even have the time. But... it's just sort of crazy to decide to do a solo daytrip to Seattle on the spur of the moment, isn't it?

Wait. Did I say crazy?

My friend lived in Arizona for a while and said that, around New Years, there was a lot of random gunfire because people like shooting guns at New Years. I've got the teeniest suspicion that Seattle could be the same. You know, it's like another world...

Is it even possible to do a daytrip to Seattle on the bus?

Currently watching:
The Kids in the Hall - Complete Season 1 (1989-1990)
Release date: 27 April, 2004

hairy situation

Current mood:somewhat bored

There's this woman at work who may or may not have gotten a hair transplant. Like, before Christmas there was significantly less hair than there is today. My friend said it's just permed, but perms don't give you twice as much hair, do they? How does one go about confirming whether someone got a hair transplant or just a wig?

Why do I care? I have no idea.

You're right. It's none of my business. Note to self: be less concerned with others.

Have you see The Little Buzzers Podcast? So cute! Seriously. Up there with Teen Girl Squad. And I'm not just saying that because one looks extremely phallic.

By the way, you look sooo makey-outy.

Currently reading:
The Hip Handbag Book: 25 Easy to Make Totes, Purses and Bags
By Sherri Haab
Release date: 15 September, 2004

poor planning

Current mood: remorseful

Boxing week sale at Scratch, and I already spent my Christmas money. Damn. Life is unfair.

Currently listening:
Our Thickness
By Russian Futurists
Release date: 03 May, 2005

whew, it's over

Current mood: relieved/somewhat let down

Just back from my parents' house this afternoon. Visiting is hard work.

It's distressing to see what's happened to my hometown. All these enormous apartment complexes are popping up along the beaches and throughout town. They're all pretty ugly and poorly made. And cost almost as much as an apartment in Vancouver. Seriously. Progress isn't necessarily a good thing, and 8 storey apartments in a town where you aren't supposed to build over 3 or 4 (the firetrucks can't reach above 3 storeys) is obviously greedy. It would be easier to see the town fall apart if I didn't know that people on town council are getting paid off to give permits to their buddies to build and then getting further kickbacks when the projects are finished. But, alas; this is progress.

I also have a feeling that my parents' neighbours are the friends of a new friend who mentioned having friends there. What are the odds? I've never seen them and I'm not positive, but from the info gleaned from my parents it seems plausible.

I saw some guys from high school and was pleased that the one still does cheek kisses when greeting girls. I wish I could say it's just because it's me, but it's cultural; he's Portuguese. I do wish more people would double cheek kiss. When I lived in Japan and hung out with the Brazilians, it was awesome to meet new people because they would all cheek kiss and you'd instantly feel more comfortable and familiar. And the same during my French homestay. Maybe it's time to adopt it daily. Everyone likes being kissed, don't they?

Currently watching:
It's All Gone Pete Tong
Release date: 20 September, 2005

give us a break, give us a break

I listened to "Teenland" today and, holy crap, I love that song. My friend Geraldine can do that dance, including the squat, and I'm amazed every time. If I could find someone nearby who could do that... well, that would just be dope. Dear Northern Pikes: please get on that bandwagon that Honeymoon Suite, Glass Tiger, Loverboy, April Wine, etc. have jumped on and fuckin' tour already.

Also, I bought lilac coloured Dragons today and I'm worried I look like a sissy.

job offer

Current mood:tired on a sugar high

I still have presents to buy and no time to do it. Anyone want to be a personal shopper for me? I will treat you badly and require you to buy the gifts with your own money, after which I will take the gifts and promise to "pay you back later." I reserve the right to come back later and confront you on why you bought a certain thing because I obviously wouldn't buy something so tacky/expensive/nice/etc. for that particular person and you should know that. Additionally, I expect them to be wrapped in paper that I would like, but you have to intrinsically know what I would like because I don't have the time to tell you. They should be wrapped well but not too well because I want the receivers to think I wrapped them and, while I'm an excellent wrapper, I tend to get lazy during the holidays, so you must, on your own, figure out how well I could wrap while being lazy and do that. If you don't you will have to re-wrap until it looks right. For this simple task I would pay you in minty chocolate and brandy beans. Tempting?

Currently reading:
The Secret Mulroney Tapes: Unguarded Confessions of a Prime Minister
By Peter C. Newman
Release date: 12 September, 2005

tipsy

Current mood: how many drinks was that?

Tonight I went out with my best friend from high school. We haven't hung out much since I moved back to Vancouver and it was something I felt bad about, but didn't do too much to remedy. She sent a Christmas card and I called to see if she wanted to meet up for dinner or something to catch up. It was awkward at first, but by the time we went for drinks it had gotten significantly easier and we discovered that we're going through a lot of the same stuff.

It got me wondering if it's the age in general that makes people sort of introspective about stuff or if, because of our similar childhood, we are following a specific path set out based on our shared experiences and circumstances that scarred us.

What I appreciate most about encounters like this is that it isn't that hard to fall into a level of comfort with certain people. Like, I've known her since kindergarten, and we should be completely different and there is no reason why we should get along, but we can fall back into friendship with very little effort. I wish it were so easy with everyone.

Whenever people tell me I shouldn't bother with Christmas cards (since they sorta stress me out generally), I think of these times when I can reconnect with someone with such a small, simple gesture. It puts me into the holiday mood so much more than the decorations or Christmas music. That and generous pints of beer.

Did I mention I slipped on wet tile at the Skytrain, causing blood to flow from my hand? Crap.

Currently listening:
Girls Can Tell
By Spoon
Release date: 20 February, 2001

is it possible to o.d. on bacon?

Current mood: pained

I am so unwell right now. I ate so much bacon and sugar that my belly is angry. Really angry. It's bitch-slapping me from the inside. It was all because of the bacon Christmas party my friends planned, a good cause. I walked away with a Napoleon Dynamite illustration that Nathan drew and coloured (totally cool) and a coloured pyrex bowl.

Can I tell you how much I LOVE coloured pyrex?! I love it. I would marry it if it were emotionally available.

But my belly hurts and I don't have any ginger or anything fizzy, so I suffer in relative silence. Maybe it's time to drink some milk. Or tea. And I still have bacon in the fridge that I couldn't cook fast enough to take with. I'll probably forget in a day or so and have bacon & tomato sandwiches. Mmmm, that sounds good...

Currently watching:
The Sound of Music (40th Anniversary Edition)
Release date: 15 November, 2005

like a sponge

Current mood: don't ask

My coworker gave me SpongeBob SquarePants Christmas decorations today and I LOVE them. We had a 15-minute conversation about past episodes we've seen and it was fairly indepth. I realised that I must like SBSP way more than I consciously know because I know more than is normal to know about him. It freaked me out a bit because, like, kids with soft skulls and low IQs like him.

I feel somewhat undead today, assuming the undead feel anything at all except the longing for brains. It seems like my body doesn't mind running on 6 hours sleep, but 5 hours... forget about it. It might have actually been less than 5 hours, but, at this point, it hardly matters. If I needed to operate heavy machinery I'm not sure I could do that with a clear conscience.

Do you know any good bacon recipes? I have to bring bacon to the Second Annual Bacon Christmas Party tomorrow and can't think of any creative ways to prepare bacon dishes. Ways that are tasty, I mean. And I already know about the almond/date/bacon one, so give me something new to work on. Thanks.

Currently reading:
Life's a Bitch: The Bitchy Bitch Chronicles
By Roberta Gregory
Release date: 31 July, 2005

how to be inappropriate

Current mood: offensive/offended

At work, all the departments send out Christmas cards, often related to the type of work they do. Most of them are dull black-and-white photocopies of some sort of lame clip art. These "cards" suck ass. My department hadn't put anything together so my co-worker was informally assigned the task of making something.

She was stumped so I gave her something I found on my friend's page. It was Christmasy, but when we put it together she wasn't sure if people would think it tasteless. It had OJ Simpson holding a Christmas ham with a selection of dinner items and a big grin on his face with the caption "Christmas fits me like a glove"... and put a note inside about us being tastefully entertaining. Everyone who saw it laughed like crazy. Some said they weren't sure all recipients would appreciate our humour. It was axed by our department head. I was sorta pissed because I was offended by the shitty cards we got and no one stopped those from being sent out. With no other choice and a slight grudge, I put something else together.

I found a photo of Jackie Chan fake-biting the pudgy cheek of a small child. The caption: "What are you eating this holiday season?" Lame, yes. Some could call it offensive, sure. But when you don't let me send out OJ this is the shit you get. For some reason this was still deemed offensive, but less so than the previous card. I expect someone is going to be offended regardless, but, really, what do they expect? We're degenerates.

Currently listening:
Christmas Album
By Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass
Release date: 18 October, 2005

weak willed

Current mood: pain in the necky

I gave in to my urges and bought eggnog. And I only feel slighty guilty about this. I discovered the best way to drink it: fill the glass between a third and a half of the way up and then add some milk to thin it out, but leave a little space for butter ripple schnapps. I know, I know, schnapps is what high school kids and severe alchoholics drink, but in this instance.... so yummy!

Last night I went to a couple of parties. The first was OK, but people weren't very mingley and I'm far too shy to just go up to people and start chatting, so I held my friends' baby a lot. Had a rum and eggnog and wished for the above recipe instead. The second party was much better and I fraternized tolerably. It was meant to be practice to socialize with more ease. Not sure if that was accomplished, but at least I managed to talk to people I don't really know. It was a co-worker's party, so I sorta knew who people were, but had never talked to. But I did make plans to go for high tea with a couple of girls, so it was a good night.

Currently listening:
Rocket to Russia
By The Ramones
Release date: 19 June, 2001

natsukashii

Current mood: dumbheadish

Ima "The New Music" o mite iru. Sugoku omoshiroi. Minna san wa "Nippon wa subarashii desu yo" o hanashimasu. Demo minna san wa chotto baka desu. Death From Above wa kakkoii demo Broken Social Scene to Metric to Stars wa kankoukyaku o rashiku mieru. "Nihonjin wa kibishii desu. Karuchaa-shokku ga arunai yo." Bakajin. Demo watashi wa sugoku natsukashii. Shittobukai desu.

Nihongo o wasuremashita. Gomen.

I was supposed to go on a tour of the Pantages Theatre this afternoon and accidentally wrote down 150 W. Hastings instead of 150 E. Hastings. Crap. It's not like they have tours everyday, or ever. I'm concerned that now I'll never see it because they're going to tear the shit out of it and the original features will be gone. It's the last original Pantages Theatre in North America. Dumb eyes, looking at stuff wrong.

On a cheerier note, my new Polaroid JobPro 2 arrived today. It's a sweet yellow. Lomo will be the death of me, one way or another. They've practically stolen all my extra money with their toy cameras over the last few years. And the new ReadyMade came, too!

Currently listening:
Tone Soul Evolution
By The Apples In Stereo
Release date: 10 February, 1998

richmond is the closest thing to hell within driving distance

Current mood: regretful, yet pleased like a Catholic school girl

After work my friend generously took me to Costco on his way to Ikea. I really, really had to stop myself from buying more than my list of necessary things, which included Japanese oranges and a bag of bacon (that's a whole other story. The fact that you can buy actual bacon in a resealable bag... *shudder*). I bypassed the attractive cheese displays. I avoided the chocolate piles. I didn't go down any of the aisles. I even tried to not like the free samples. But then... then my friend had to cut through the DVD area and point out that they have Clone Wars: Vol. 2, and it was on my brother's wish list for Christmas. Aurgh!

I mean, I've already bought him two from his list, but when am I going to find this one again? That's the problem: I plan ahead too much. So, I can either be a super awesome (har har) sister and give him three times as much for Christmas, like I do every year, or I can stockpile them and give them successively through the next few gift-giving seasons. I will be surprised if he doesn't just give my mom $20 to put his name on what she got for me. He's thoughtful that way. But I know what he's like, and this really isn't about my brother.

It's about the evilness that lurks everywhere in Richmond.

We went to Ikea. It was horrible. I kept whispering under my breath, "I hate Ikea," while I touched lamps that I didn't need and sat on couches I have no room for. Yet I couldn't stop wanting them. I had to talk my friend out of a runner for his floor. A runner! Do straight men actually buy floor runners?! So, after not needing anything, I bought a monkey for my friends' kid, hangers for my closet overhaul, and a new shower curtain with rings to replace the creepy one that has barely been protecting the room from the evil water droplets that cleverly, though surprisingly, manage to get through plastic with more frequency than a polymer of any sort should allow. It's just lucky that my home is getting smaller with each passing day or I would have bought a new desk and an enormous bed that wouldn't fit in my bedroom.

And gas was 86.4 cents. It must be hell there.

Currently listening:
Push Kings
By Push Kings
Release date: 20 October, 1998

addictions are hard

Current mood: shaky

A couple weeks ago I had some eggnog at my friends' house. It was so delicious and creamy and it brought back all the old feelings of needing, wanting. I've been avoiding the grocery store because it calls to me, even if I don't go near the refrigerated units. It taunts me. How am I going to live on pasta and cans of corn for the next three weeks?

And the dumb grocery store near my house has sent me a 10% off card for the month, so I could get litres and litres of eggnog at a discount if I would just give in.

I must be strong. I must not buy eggnog.

Off to the grocery store. I think we all know I'm coming home with eggnog. Or maybe I'll just switch the addiction to chocolate milk. Mmmm.... chocolate milk....

Currently listening:
Chocolate & Cheese
By Ween
Release date: 27 September, 1994

down to the wire

Current mood: odd

How will I ever get ready for Christmas? It's the start of December and I've got nothing done. Less than nothing. I have a box of cards on my floor that need addressing, writing and mailing. Lists of presents to make and buy. Decorations that could, technically, be put onto a tree if I felt like cleaning a space in my living room.

But I want none of that.

I'd like Christmas faeries or pixies or elves or whatever supernatural beings are popular this year to work silently in the night and prepare me for Christmas. I stress the silently part because I don't want to know about it or feel the guilt from not doing it myself. If it were just done... I'd leave catnip or cocaine or whatever it is those entities get off on as a thank you.

Does anyone send Christmas cards anymore? Should I even bother?

Currently listening:
You Are the Light
By Jens Lekman
Release date: 17 August, 2004