The ex-patriot's story

It's a cold but sunny day today, and if you're out of the wind, quite pleasant. I went for a smoke outside, and was chatting with one of the gentlemen who works at a food service place in our office complex. He's in a wonderful mood, looking forward to his New Year vacation and enjoying the sunny day. I noticed he had a really intriguing accent, and I asked him, "where are you from"? He answered, "Cuba". Then, I got some education.

I couldn't possibly relate everything he told me, but it was certainly eye-opening. In Cuba, doing the same work he does here in Canada, his rate of pay was $15 (Cuban) per month. To buy one litre of milk costs 2 Cuban dollars. Adults go without and keep the milk in the freezer to make it last, so their kids can have milk at least before they go to school in the mornings. The average Cuban goes without shoes, and wears the oldest of clothes - and of course in Cuba it's scorching hot, all the time. He told me that when working outside, he would often feel as though he was going to have a heart attack from the heat, but he must work.

He told me of a friend he has, who is in his words, "ignorante". This other man loves Fidel Castro, Fidel is all good and makes Cuba all good. He told me, Fidel is no good. Fidel lives in a huge mansion, huge table, loads of food with $700 bottle of wine with his dinner, while the common Cuban people go hungry. But, he is optimistic. Now that Fidel's brother is president, things are slowly starting to change. The Cuban people (if they can afford it) are now allowed on the land of the resorts which we North Americans flock to - before, they were barred. There are plans for casinos to bring more money and jobs to the country. But, he told me, after living there for 24 years, he came to Canada and HIS eyes were opened.

"The first time I went to buy groceries, there was a wall of milk. All this milk, I thought it was just a display. 'No,' my wife said, 'it is all real, all to buy.' So much food! Incredible." He is grateful for his job, for his home and for the ability to buy warm clothes for our cold winter. He is happy that his wife and daughter are healthy (and all three of them have milk to drink). His daughter goes to school with a good breakfast and sleeps in a soft bed with no bugs or leaks. He told me, "After I lived in Canada one year, I went back to Cuba. I saw my house, my family - I cried. I cried because before Canada I thought that was all there could be. And then, then I hate Fidel. The people are not free. Canada is free, we are very lucky here." I agreed with him, wholeheartedly. We ARE incredibly lucky here.

This smiling man, enjoying a cigarette break from his job in the sunshine, looking forward to his vacation. "People work hard, but they need to rest. I'm going to relax, enjoy myself a few days." So right.

Back to work!

All good things must come to an end, including Christmas holidays. Yesterday, being Sunday, we were completely lazy - gamed most of the day and knit and watched a movie. Today the alarm went off and I was not pleased to hear it beeping!

So, back to the office to hear about everyone's Christmases and do some work - albeit at a rather leisurely pace. This week is about closing down 2008 and prepping 2009, file maintenance and cleanup. Time to get our ducks in a row!

Happy Monday!

The continuation of Christmas!

So today, the day after Boxing Day, we ventured out to spend our Christmas money - whee! Peter got some good beading tools and resource books (his newest passion - made me a lovely tigerseye bracelet for Christmas). I hit the warehouse sale at Wool-Tyme but nothing really stirred me there, so we went into the main store and I found some gorgeous Galway Highland Heather (colour 620, the deep burgundy), which I will turn into a Mr. Greenjeans later this winter. Also got some pretty Cadenza (colour 955, a shocking but lovely purple mix) that I am going to make into Brenda Dayne's Pembrokeshire Pathways socks. Of course I want to start them both right away!

But, I am going to try to "be good" this coming year, and work on just one project at a time (hm, sound familiar?) Right now I am almost halfway through Peter's new work socks (well, halfway through the FIRST one), and of course worsted-weight socks go quickly. Then I want to finish that green pullover I started for myself back in the fall, which got stuffed in a bag and ignored in all the moving fuss. And then, a pair of Fleece Artist socks for Mom's birthday in February. THEN - then, I can start on the new projects!

Today the weather turned warm and wet - right now it is about 2 degrees above zero and just *bucketing* rain down, which is sitting on top of the ice and making walking and driving kind of... interesting? But we are home safe and sound with no drama, thank heavens.

Hm, I just want to grab that Galway and give it a squeeze, for luck, you know? So it doesn't feel neglected. Nope, better leave it in the closet or else things might get silly. :)

Holy cow - in the time it took me to write this post, Peter just whipped together a beautiful pair of earrings for me! I will have to post a picture of them later... such a creative and generous hubby I have! Now I *really* should get back to work on his socks, I guess!

'Twas the day after Christmas...

And all through the house, was the sound of the keyboards as I geeked with my spouse!

Yes, it's Boxing Day and we are having a nice quiet geeky morning, gaming and catching up on newsgroups and blogs... I need to re-find all my blogs because I got a new (hand me down but still kickass) computer and of course haven't transferred all my files and stuff over yet!

The holidays so far have been lovely. Christmas Eve day I played hooky from work (the roads were bad, Peter didn't want me driving so I took the half-day off) and we had a nice quiet day of naps and knitting and baking the annual fruitcake! Finished Yumi's new hat just in the nick of time, as Christmas Eve we spent with the Bundy&Kid household, feasting (and feasting) on yummy nibblies and enjoying pleasant conversation and some good laughs. Home to bed early, and to all a good night.

Christmas Day we were up at the crack of dark again and immediately logged in to WoW to get our Winter's Veil presents from Greatfather Winter! So much fun to get all these neat virtual toys, snowball fights and rocket car races in the city... good silliness to kick off the day. Then out to Mom & Dad's (with a Starbucks stop of course), for present-ing and turkey-ing and all. Lots of laughs over gifts given and received - everyone was pleased and spoiled rotten as usual! I was particularly happy that my niece was THRILLED with a top we got for her - $3 at Value Village and she looks like a million bucks in it! I think everyone got what they asked for - I know I did - both the practical and the indulgent. Got some "do not spend on bills" money which is going straight to the big warehouse yarn sale tomorrow!

Today we are going to do some house chores (funny how things can pile up in a hurry when you're preparing for the holidays) and then out to Peter's brother & sister-in-law's for Boxing Day dinner. Mmm she makes an amazing ham! Then the whole weekend to goof off in before I go back to work on Monday (which will also involve some goofing off I'm sure, but what the heck).

I started a new pair of socks for Peter yesterday after the gift opening; the Freshisle Fibers Hunter's Socks in Marian's Suffolk Wool - they will be safety orange with black stripe, heel and toes. Perfect work socks! Hope to get some pictures up soon. I hope you and yours are also having a wonderful and relaxing holiday time!

Why I hate winter

Tonight, I was going to go to my first Knit Nite out with the girls in MONTHS. This morning, I walked up to the corner to catch my ride into work, and when I stepped from the street to the sidewalk, hit a patch of ice under the snow and BOOM! down I go. Blacked out briefly. Cars went by. Nice neighbour lady stops and helps me up, and back to my house (thank god), even so far as to take off my boots for me and make sure I was ok before she went to work (I hope she got in ok).

So I drag myself upstairs (thank god for good sturdy railings), get breakfast and anti-inflammatories into me right away, and up to bed. After a movie-pseudo-nap, assessed the damage:

1. Left knee definitely sprained;
2. Left ankle also sprained and size of a small football;
3. Left hamstring badly strained;
   
4. Lower back completely twisted;
5. Left shoulder making weird popping noise, probably strained but not too painful;
6. No headache so I guess no concussion;
7. Slight numbness/tingling in a few fingertips (yeah, no gloves, stupid).

Checked my work email on the Blackberry and a certain executive is screaming about certain deadlines yadda yadda so it looks like I will be going in tomorrow with a bag of painkillers/anti-inflammatories and my crutches (conveniently still at hand since last year's RIGHT leg injury). I will be there, I will be productive, but dammit someone is going to be fetching my coffee and snacks for me!

The real pain in the butt about this is that I can't even blame it on the OC Transpo strike, because the spot where I fell I would have had to walk across to catch the bus, too. Dammit. Ok, time for some more painkillers and maybe some knitting. Might as well!

Home sweet Home

Well, we've been in our new home for six days now and we absolutely love it. It's big, bright, clean and beautiful! My knitting chair is set up next to the fireplace, backing onto the living room window (southwest exposure, perfect for afternoon knitting), and the yarn is safely stowed away (and organized!) in its own yarn cabinet here in the computer room. Well... most of it. Three bags full of wool didn't QUITE fit, but they are for specific projects and therefore not part of the general stash, so that doesn't count... really.

It's five minutes for Peter to get to work, and a very relaxing bus ride for me (one bus, wohoo!) - about 30 minutes in the morning and 45 in the evening. Love not having to drive in the traffic anymore, especially with it getting dark so soon and the bad weather coming on.

I do have some small Christmas knitting to get onto soon, but first I'm making something for me; another One-Row Scarf, this one in green and black to match the Basic Cable I made last year for Peter (and then mistakenly felted in the wash - oops). It's actually a 2-row scarf, because I'm using some Patons Classic that had been worked with the green and black together, and I'm untwisting the two colours as I go. So it's two rows green, two rows black, and so on. I think it's coming together very pretty, and I can actually knit it on the bus using a small circular - the advantage of being one of the early stops on the route, I always get a seat!

So back to the new place... (sorry, very VERY excited about the new place). We are probably about 70% unpacked now (many more empty boxes than full ones!) and having a great deal of fun with finding just the right places for furniture and all the bits and pieces that make it home. Also clearing out MASSIVE amounts of stuff - some to a friend who is moving at the end of this month, and probably a couple of carloads full to the Value Village - still good things, but we set ourselves strict criteria:

1. Do we need it?
2. Do we LIKE it?
3. Do we have a place for it?

Amazing all the things that pile up over the years and you don't notice because they're squirreled away in closets or they've just "always been there." It's really refreshing to clear the junk this way (would have been better to do it BEFORE the move and not have to pack it all, but no system is perfect!). And we are acquiring a few nice new things - little touches like new bathroom mats and dish towels, start off fresh and clean and keep good housekeeping habits right from the get-go. We are finding so much enjoyment in little things like doing the dishes together, right after dinner, so that the kitchen is clean and tidy before bed. A real sense of accomplishment at the end of the evening - we both go to work, we come home, we unpack some stuff, we keep it all tidy and clean and we go to bed feeling happy and proud. It really is an incredible feeling, and it feels like HOME.

Moving day in 5...

All the knitting is in a box. All the books are in boxes. After today, the computers will be in a box. We are moving in five days and everything but the kitchen is now in a box.

I am SICK of boxes! I want to automagically be done. I'm tired, tired, tired. And I miss my knitting. :(

Countdown's on...

So here we are, two weeks out (well two weeks yesterday) from the move, and we are about 80% packed up. Utilities and cable/internet/phone booked, movers booked, and a BIG pile of boxes in the front porch. Still lots to do but I'm not stressing too much, and making sure to take time for some R&R along with the preparations. I made a pair of slippers! For my grandmother, she loves them (little booties, I need to take a picture), and they are nice and cozy and warm. Felt good to start/finish something quickly!

So looking forward to the new place - yesterday it rained all day and Peter said how perfect a day it would be to curl up by the fireplace with a couple of good books. Soon!

One minute

I set my watch alarm this morning to be sure and remember to stop and pray at 11:00. It beeped, I advised my co-workers of the time and bowed my head in thanks and sorrow. I had set a second alarm for exactly one minute - it did not beep. The battery in the watch had died.

Somehow, that's appropriate. It takes far more than sixty seconds, once a year, to properly appreciate the sacrifices of people in uniform, and of their loved ones.

Remember - always.

Fall back!

Yes, the time change was last night/this morning, and even though I was up at 6:30 (new time) I feel pretty good today. That extra hour is a bonus!

Been working on the packing up and staying on top of the housework so that come moving day everything is clean and ready to go. Even got some knitting in yesterday on my green sweater, I was watching TV after I twisted my ankle in the shower (it's better today) and really needed to knit. A little progress is a good thing!

Still lots to do, this week I need to arrange for the utilities to be transferred on the right date, and talk to the DMV about switching my car over to my sister, and get the mail forwarding / change of address stuff set up with the post office. We did get the movers booked, so that's all set to go. Now more packing, more tossing, more packing, more sorting, more packing... but it will be SO much easier at the new place when all the unpacking is smooth because stuff is sorted and labeled properly.

And, it's November! A little over 3 weeks to go... then we get all settled in and ready for Christmas. Life is good!

Snow Day!

The wind is howling, the snow is falling (and has done all night), and I, my friends, am not going out in it today. I have ONE vacation day left for this year, and today is it. Instead of going to work, I am staying in the warm, with my fuzzy PJs, my kitties, lots of hot tea and soup. I have packing and dishes and laundry to do, a hat to knit, and all of Season 2 of "Big Love" to help me enjoy the day.

I feel kind of bad that Peter had to work and not take a snow day, but he's an excellent driver and deals with the stupidity of the "oh-dear-what's-all-this-white-stuff" people far better than I do on the first snow of the year (the forecast was for about 6", with high winds - just enough to bring out the stupid). However, when he gets home there will be homemade chicken soup waiting, and a meatloaf for dinner - maybe even cake, if I'm feeling really energetic.

The funny thing is even though I don't have to go to work, I got up with the alarm (ok, and the snowplow noise) at 5:30. I have a whole day and I get to decide what to do with it. BLISS!

If you're out on the roads today, be safe. I'll be sending you anti-stupid-driver vibes, from here in the warm.

5 weeks to go!

5 weeks from today will be moving day - so much to do but progress is happening. I packed another bookshelf and a bit yesterday; my god, we have SO MANY books but I wouldn't part with them. Packed up the spare linens (really, we don't need 20 towels for 2 people!) and a few odds and ends from the kitchen that are going to a friend. Got laundry done, got dishes done, and all that was Saturday morning. Then I fell down on the couch until 8:00 and had a Corner Gas marathon - such intelligent, funny stuff, I love that show! Too bad they're in their final season but really some shows are meant to have a finite lifespan or they get stale - it's good that they recognize that and are going out gracefully.

Today the forecasted rain seems to not be happening (yay), so we are going for groceries, new boots for Peter, and then down to B&K to bang some more wood together on the deck. Have to get more empty moving boxes too. I actually do enjoy the packing up when it's not rushed - fill a box, label it with contents and room (hell, I'm even colour-coding the rooms), put it on the pile. Kind of like moving-Tetris LOL!

Sometime this week I need to get into the yarn bins for a pre-move tidy up and make sure everything is secure, and also get the mats out for my new toque, as it's been getting cold lately. It should only take a couple of evenings to knit up and then I'll be set for the winter. All the other projects are on hold until after the move, but I'm planning to make Christmas tree ornaments for gifts this year and they are quick and fun, so that's something to look forward to. Here's a shot of the ones I did last year, I may do some new ones but these ones I really like:


Hard to believe that Christmas is only 2 months away! Well, by then we will be all cosily settled in to the new place. I'm looking forward to Christmas Eve snuggled up by the fireplace with my hubby and my kitties - assuming of course that Mok doesn't attack the tree (she's such a mischievous little brat sometimes, but we love her).

Oh, so much to do! Have a great day.

As Bernice once said...

"Time is against us, and we have things to do!"

It seems the fall days are flying by now; the forecast for tonight is for -5 and the page-a-day calendar on my desk is getting thinner and thinner (actually so am I - yay!). About six weeks until the move and so far I've packed exactly 5 boxes of books - not even a full bookshelf. We have empty boxes piled up in the front porch, it's just hard to figure out where to start. What do we not need every day? What do we not need at all? I've put all my knitting away in the yarn bins because if I get sucked into a project I will neglect the packing even further... *sigh* I must make an attempt to pack at least 1 box each day, otherwise it's going to be a mad rush and things will be a disorganized mess, which will make me crazy.

In good news, my folks have generously offered to pay for movers, so at least we don't have to do the lifting and lugging - just get everything packed up and labelled and then stand back and give directions. The unpacking of course will be another task, but we will find places for everything (and everything in it's place ha ha) fairly quickly.

OH, for a week of holidays to just get it all done! Unfortunately my vacation-day bank at work is at a meager .76 days (yeah, not even a full day) so I will have to pick away at things. So, what am I doing at the computer? Procrastinating of course!

Like Bing Crosby said...

I've got plenty to be thankful for. (Holiday Inn, great movie if you haven't seen it).

Counting-blessing time!

1. Peter my husband
   
2. My family (blood and chosen)
3. My kitties
4. My health (mental is getting better, physical is WIP)
5. My work and coworkers
6. Our new home (as of December 1st we have a LOVELY new home - squee!)
7. Books and knitting and movies and computers and other things to enjoy leisure time - of which I actually HAVE a fair bit, these days.

It's been an up and down year, no question, but since this is a traditional day for giving thanks, I want to thank everyone who loves me, who shows concern for me, who makes me laugh and smile and even sometimes make me completely crazy. And I want to thank me too, because (to quote the Beatles) it's getting better all the time. And it's been some hard work along the way.

Go. Be with those you love, and thank them. And have pie!

Gotta move...

So new-home-hunting is on; we found a charming little condo last weekend but sadly the owners decided they preferred a higher-income, no-cats family. Screw'em. We move onwards and upwards.

After a brief (and, I admit, moderately whiny) chat with Mom, she has offered to front us first and last and a couple hundred extra if needed to get a NICE place - the kind of place we can afford three months from now, but not right now. So we surfed a bit and found two quite nice-sounding split-level condos (they are on the same street) that are in a very nice neighbourhood and convenient to work for Peter and a quick bus to work for me. Going to see one on Sunday, waiting to hear back on the other. Cross fingers. These are real "grown-up" type places, the kind of place that you think (if you're like me and have had some bad luck, housing-wise, in the past) that is almost too good for you. Then you (ok, I) gives myself a mental boot to the head and says "You know what? You DESERVE a nice place to live, stupid!"

In other news, I met with my nice therapist guy on Monday and he pronounced me "much improved." So unless I go completely off the rails, I don't need to see him anymore, and I still have a good list of reference materials to check out if things start to go a little wonky. The meds are helping, I totally believe that. Aside from a few initial side-effect adjustments (which went away quickly), I feel a lot more balanced and composed. Little shit don't get me down no more. And with the colder weather setting in, I will be quitting smoking again very soon (probably within a couple weeks), and really feel the knit-urge coming on strong again too, which is good because for a couple weeks there I didn't feel like knitting at all, which is really odd for me.

Even work is improving - stuff is getting wrapped up for this year and next year is starting to set up nicely. Oh, still the occasional fire to put out but like I say, it ain't getting me down no more. Onward and upward!

TGIF

Well, it's been an interesting week. Lots of work-work (an unbelievable amount of paper has crossed my desk this week). A bit of manual labour (dig, dig, dig, dig... yay, no more digging!). And for some extra weirdness, we're going to be moving, sometime in the next 2 months. Our landlord has decided he wants to give our house to his daughter to live in, so out we go, by November 30.

Now, we had planned on moving anyway, just were thinking maybe Spring would be a better time. Ah well - everything happens for a reason, in its season, as they say. So the next few weeks are going to be hectic; finding a place, packing, hauling some stuff out to Peter's brother's place and to my folks... (smart parents, mine - they gave us a patio set for our wedding and now they're "storing" it for us - theirs is worn out). Not a lot of time for knitting in the next while, but this weekend I'm going to try to get a bit in, in between loads of laundry and calling for apartment viewings. Provided Mok-mok, Preventer of Knitting Via Excessive Cute-Snuggling, lets me!

Saturday *sigh*

So I goofed last night/this morning and shut off MY alarm when I shut off Peter's at 1 a.m. Which means I slept too late to make it to my exercise class, and for extra fun woke up from a nightmare by means of Mok licking the nightmare-tears from my face (good kitty, she loves me). After a half-hour of cuddle-recovery from the dream (which I thank God can't remember), I got up and am FREEZING cold with full-body aches. Blargh.

Upside, I got on the scale and am down to 171.4 lbs - was around 175 a couple weeks ago (too lazy to look it up right now) so apparently the cigarette diet is working. HA! Yeah, I'm smoking again, full-on. About 3 packs in the last 2 weeks, and with the corresponding lack of appetite I'm losing weight, albeit in the "wrong" way. Whatever, I'll quit again soon - quitting is not hard for me to do - and it has been helping me deal with stress at work, so I'm not going to beat myself up for it. Although I DO at times want to beat up my fellow-smokers, who have invariably been greeting me outside the past week with "What are YOU doing here? You quit! What's that in your hand? Oh no!" And I'm responding (pleasantly) with "same as you, having a smoke. " God, the hypocrisy.

So today I'm going to take it easy again, and maybe putter on some laundry, and maybe knit and maybe read or game awhile. I'm tired, bone tired, despite having slept longer than usual (or maybe that's why). Odd, I've been feeling better and better (mentally/emotionally) all week, but today I just want to stay in my PJs and do not much. Tomorrow will be better.

We are becoming a nation of wimps

From the Weather Network website, Thursday September 18, 2008, 3:29 p.m.:

FROST WARNING: City of Ottawa
Issued at 3:00 PM EDT THURSDAY 18 SEPTEMBER 2008
WIDESPREAD FROST EXPECTED TONIGHT INTO FRIDAY MORNING. THIS IS A WARNING THAT AT OR NEAR ZERO GROUND TEMPERATURES WILL CAUSE FROST IN THE PARTS OF THESE REGIONS. MONITOR WEATHER CONDITIONS..LISTEN FOR UPDATED STATEMENTS.
A LARGE ARCTIC HIGH PRESSURE AREA FROM THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES IS PRESSING SOUTHEAST ACROSS NORTHERN ONTARIO AND WILL SETTLE OVER SOUTHERN ONTARIO TONIGHT. UNDER CLEAR SKIES AND LIGHT WINDS TONIGHT TEMPERATURES ARE LIKELY TO DROP TO NEAR OR BELOW FREEZING FOR SEVERAL HOURS TONIGHT INTO FRIDAY MORNING. AS A RESULT WIDE SPREAD FROST IS EXPECTED.

My God. It's FROST, people, not a bloody 3-foot blizzard! Jeez...

Fall is upon us!

Well, not for another 3 days per se, but the chilly temperatures in the mornings this week are making me think I'd better get the toque done to match the scarf I did last month! Been working away here and there on the new sweater, it's at a fiddly bit around the neckline/shoulders and every time I pick it up to work on, a cat materializes in my lap so the progress is a bit slow. Ah well, even 1 row is something!

Things are "evening out" for lack of a better term, emotionally and whatnot. I've been on Effexor XR for a week now and once I got over the initial side effects, it seems to be helping. Of course just talking things out with people and trying to let go of the little daily annoyances is helping too! My new motto is: "If this is my problem, I'll deal with it. If it's not, I'm not going to worry about it." With my job, just being able to step back and say, "Hey, not my responsibility" is a WONDERFUL solution.

And with the rest of life, I am doing my damndest to not make mountains of molehills. For instance, my car needs repair (the muffler is d-e-a-d). This will cost between $200-$500 to fix depending on how badly rusted out the other bits and pieces of the exhaust system are. Six months ago, this would have been a CRISIS - how can we afford it, when can I get it fixed, etc. etc. Now, it's an inconvenience, but not a catastrophe. Take car to shop, shop fixes car, car is safe and sound again, carry on. It just means a pinch in the budget but we will have some extra income in the next couple of weeks so it's a temporary glitch. Dishes piled up in the kitchen? Well, if they don't get done today, they'll get done tomorrow. Ditto laundry, as long as we both have enough clean clothes to get through the work week, I don't mind spending part of Sunday doing the washing. We're not living in an insurmountable den of filth, so I'm not going to feel guilty if I don't want to do chores after work every night.

Maybe it's because the sun has finally decided to come out and stay a few days, but I'm actually feeling pretty good about life, the universe, and everything (42). So I want to make note of that, so I can look at it if a dark day rolls in. Happy Thursday.

Step 1: make a plan

Next year (next summer), Peter and I are taking a REAL vacation - the first one we've had in about oh... six years? We are going to drive out to Gibsons BC and back, and the plan is to have it coincide with the Gibsons Fiber Festival. When we first got together, and for the longest time when we were dating, we spent loads of time just bombing around the back roads, driving here and there - then we did a road trip down East so I could show Peter my old stomping grounds, and now this will be about double the length of that trip. Suffice to say, we love spending time driving together!

Of course there are many things to be arranged in the meantime - vacation time to accrue and book off, a new(er) vehicle (that's the biggie, but we'll figure something out) that will be road-worthy for the trip, and then we will pack our little bags and boogie!

It's a year away, and I'm already excited. This. Will. Happen.