Thursday, October 30, 2008

Tagged by Kay

Kay tagged me a while ago, but I just haven't felt like blogging. And this one required some thought. I'm trying very hard to just survive this election. I'll be so very, very glad when it's over. And even happier in 8 years when I can finally have a say in the direction of the country I've lived in for 8 years already!

But, on to the tagging. I've done it before, but it's been a while!

Here are the rules of the game.
• Link to the person who tagged you.
• Post the rules on your blog.
• Write six random things/unspectacular quirks about yourself.
• Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
• Let each person you have tagged know by leaving a comment on their blog.
• Let the tagger know when your entry is posted

1)I have 7 tattoos, and didn't know about any of them until 2 years later. And none of them are covered by clothes.*
2)I'm allergic to Portobello (and therefore Crimini) mushrooms.
3)I eat candies (like Smarties** or M&M's) in pairs of the same colour. Compulsively.
4)I get a nasty, nasty reaction to the flu immunization. But I get it every year anyways. Ouch. And can the fever please go away now?
5)I cannot simply sit and watch television or a movie. Lorna bet me once and I tried and tried, but I just couldn't do it. I *MUST* fidget. Cost me $20 because I couldn't make it through one movie. I think that's part of why I like to stitch so much. At least it's something productive!
6)I'm a giant Doctor Who fan. And Michelle's made me a scarf for my birthday. I can't wait to get it!

*Okay, I cheated and used that one again, but it's a good one!
**Smarties=chocolate candies, the Canadian/European ones, not the American ones. Although, now that I think about it, I try to eat them in pairs too.

I'm supposed to tag people, but I hate doing it. So if you'd like to, please consider yourself tagged, and leave me a comment so everyone can come read!

I'm really not one for those "you must do it" memes, but this one I support

Copy this sentence into your livejournal if you're in a heterosexual marriage, and you don't want it "protected" by the bigots who think that gay marriage hurts it somehow.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

I think they know me too well...

So I was a bad girl today and decided to treat myself to FatKids for
lunch. Normally I go in to order, and I know they recognize me there.
But today I was in a hurry and just did drive through. I think they
know me too well when I didn't remember to ask for the sweet and sour
sauce (which I use instead of ketchup) and I got back to work and
there it was in the bag. {hangs head} I don't go there that often,
honest! M at work thinks it's because I'm "too polite" and that makes
me memorable. I can't help it. I was raised to say please and thank
you! And it does bother me the way people here treat those in
"service positions". They may be working to serve me, but they are
still people too and deserve politeness!
{/rant off}

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Not that it's all that surprising...

But there is something seriously wrong in this country when it comes
to food. We had our first Weight Watchers @ Work meeting today at
lunch.* And there were actually people there who didn't know that
raisins are dried grapes...

*More on that later if I feel like ranting, and I won't be continuting
with it...

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Why I wish he would run



Colin Powell is a Republican I would have no difficulty in supporting.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies

I finally jumped in on the "ask me 5 questions" thing doing the rounds. These are from Awesome Matt..

1) LOng Island vs. Canada: WHich do you like better and why?
Both for very different reasons. A bit of a cop out answer, but true none the less. I love Canada because it's where I was born, where I grew up, where I fell in love, and where all my family lives. I love LI because I have a great job here, a decent place, awesome friends, and access to anything I want at any time. I hate the medical system here with such a passion it's not funny. If I'd grown up here, I'd have had to have declared bankruptcy at 21 years old due to medical bills. As was, all I had to do was get myself to hospital and back. I am desperate to be able to take part in the political system here. But it'll be another 8 years before I can vote. And then only if USCIS finally gets it's head out of the sand and improves their record. And given the 8.5 years it took to get our Greencards in the first place, I'm not overly hopeful. But if I had to choose between them, I guess I already did. I didn't take the job I was offered in Canada two years ago.


2) Working in the pharma industry must be fun sometimes. What's the weirdest thing you've ever handled?
Sadly I don't get weird stuff to handle. Most fun was watching my colleague (of dubious character) as I had to destroy 300 grams of pure oxycodone. (That's enough to make about 300,000 tablets...)


3) Ears or neck...one must be sensitive. Which one!
Both! I am such a ticklish person it's not funny. Well, actually it is, but you get my drift! :P


4) In the immortal words of the Reverend Horton Heat, Liquor, Beer, or Wine?
Ummm, none? I can drink or take my arthritis meds. I like to walk...


5) Favorite RPG?
I'm sad, lame and boring. I haven't actually played many systems. Living Greyhawk because of all the friends I've made through it. I'm not touching 4th ed with a ten foot pole though...

If you want in, leave me a comment (on either blog) and I'll respond with questions for you!

Monday, October 06, 2008

To Switch or Not to Switch

So... Yahoo has changed the terms of my webhosting package. It's actually turned out to be a pretty good thing for me, and one of the nice changes is that I can now set up my own Wordpress blog really easily and get away from Blogger. I never go near my hosting/transfer limit (which just went up by orders of magnitude anyways) so I'm thinking of switching. So I wanted to ask those of you who use WordPress, do you love it? Hate it? Little things that bug you?
And most importantly, have any of you migrated your blog? How hard was it? I'd rather not lose the last several years worth of posts...

Thoughts folks?

Saturday, October 04, 2008

Update!

I've seen this questionaire used before, and I'm finally giving in. It's better than not posting at all, right?
September 2008 Round Up



What books and/or magazines did I read this month?

Books: Deed of Paksenarrion (re-read at work)
The Conquerer (on Palm)
Hellboy novel (for fun on vacation)
Started: Crocodiles on the Sandbank (iPod)
Polar Shift (brain fluff reading)
5 things from the pile of magazines (1 Pop. Sci. and the other 4 from the MNH which we are members of.)



What movies and/or tv shows did I watch this month?

New shows: Fringe (Not for us, too science light and unbelievable)
Bones (LOVING it!)

Returning Favourites: NCIS, CSI, Biggest Loser, DWTS (so I know what they’re talking about at work) and Survivor

New movies: A bunch of silly things while I was at home sick. Nothing I would have normally wasted any time on and nothing I’d recommend anyone watch. But better than nothing while propped up on the couch fighting to breath without moving :P



What special days did I celebrate and how?

Ummm… 8 days at Disney! It was a combined annual vacation/wedding anniversary/got our Greencards/Brian has a job trip and WONDERFUL.
Brian went to Becky’s unbirthday party and had a great time.



What gifts did I give and/or receive?

Hallowe’en exchange with Rose in New Zealand, see photos in another post.
Lots of gifts for people from Disney.
Birthday card/Gift for Becky.



What illnesses or health concerns did I have?

MASSIVE ear and strep throat infection started our last night at Disney. 2 full courses of antibiotics, 1 ten day course of steroids and 1 ruptured ear drum later, I’m mostly better. I still have very little stamina, but it’s getting better every day. Brian picked up a little of my infections, but we got him to the Dr. ASAP and she didn’t mess around with him on antibiotics so it wasn’t nearly as bad for him.*

*Not that she messed around with me, but I’ve got drug allergies and can’t take two whole classes of antibiotics. We try not to use the extra-strong-kills-everything ones of the few I can take unless we have to so I don’t build up any resistant infections. I have enough health problems without going there! The first round killed the strep right away, apparently they just got bogged down there and didn’t go looking for any other fights :P



What fun things did I do with my friends and/or family?

Disney!!! (Do we see a theme here?) Normally there’d be more than just that, but getting sick right after knocked me right out.


What new foods, recipes or restaurants did I try this month?

Lots of new foods at Disney. We had the dining plan and made the most of it we could. Confirmed that I can’t eat Crimini mushrooms either. :( We had a great chef at Le Cellier who was the one that told me Crimini are apparently baby Portobello mushrooms (which I know I have a problem with). I decided to risk it and try just a single mouthful of Brian’s mushroom risotto because it looked soooo good. It was! It was heavenly in fact. Paying for it for the rest of the day was not. I do, however, have the recipe now and will be attempting it at home with mushrooms I *can* eat!


What special or unusual purchases did I make?

We sprung for special photos at Disney. Not something I’d ever have really decided to spend the $$ on myself, but Brian actually spoke up about REALLY wanting them. It’s so very rare that he actually wants something I was happy to indulge him.


What were this month's disappointments?

Not much really. Brian got a promotion that came without a raise, which was disappointing, but his annual review is coming in October. He’d better get a good one then!
Ruining the end of our vacation wasn't exactly on my list of high points, but overall it could have been a lot worse. What if I'd gotten sick the first night instead of the last? And given how susceptible I tend to be to things when in crowds, I'll take it. Stupid lazy immune system!


What were my accomplishments this month?

I finally finished the birth sampler I’d been working on for ages! And started the next of my obligation stitching pieces.
I got started into my unread magazine pile, which I have been meaning to for a while. It's over a foot tall...



And I leave you with something that makes me smile very, very much!




I think I might have to give in to Valerie and Michelle at work and start knitting...





Anything else noteworthy to record?