My Photo

June 23, 2009

like woah.

We moved, everything was in boxes.
We struggled to get essentials happening:
toothbrushes
food
soap
towels
sheets
pillows
etc.
Most everything was still in boxes.
Took one weekend off the restaurant.
Didn't miss a beat @ the two M-F jobbies.
Then...
Brokennose
I broke my nose.
Friday afternoon, two hours before work.
Call 911!
Cute, huh?
One week after, back to the ER for fixin.
Finally feeling normal again.
I hate how often I say that.
Office still in boxes.
But I have goals and dreams....
Oh yes I do.
Here we go!

May 08, 2009

Fourty-seven Unread Emails

So, naturally I make updating my blog a priority even though I haven't updated it in forever and it could probably wait another day or week or month. Ahhhh, the power of procrastination.

Drinking this:
KombuchaWonderDrink-300
"...a sea of health giving acids and nutrients." I don't think I'll look for more images of it though because it starts out as some natural fermented pile of pancake-y grossness, apparently.

We celebrated D's 38th birthday last night. Good times. I can't believe he's 38! I don't mind getting older, but 38 still seems so far away to me at this point. Hopefully by the time I reach it I'll have my shit together. Ha! I do believe that's what I thought I'd have by 30....

But, I digress. We had a huge Indian feast - I made curry from scratch for the first time ever. We had chicken curry and cauliflower and potatoe curry and samosas and roti and those spicy mixed nuts & peas and mango chutny and pakoras...another first timer. So yummy and for all the food we made, we have hardly anything left. Now that's the sign of a good meal. Mind you, 12 adults and 4 kids ate. Good party. Hockey game was on...we lost and that sucked. Dren was given a PS3 by a whole bundh of us and was like a small child on Christmas morning. Literally - jumping up and down and clapping his hands together with a giant grin. Ridiculous and cute.

Now that the building is fully under construction and we have voted in a new board of directors and they have officially offered the Project Liaison position to me (I like to capitalize the title because it sounds super important that way) I have to remove myself from the Presidency. So endeth my Reign of Power. To be perfectly honest, I'm relieved. I was convinced to stay for an extra term, but took it more for the sake of filling a position no one else wanted to take on. Now they have no choice. Step up peeps! I find this whole building process fascinating and am certainly already learning a lot about how to deal with people. It's always amazed me how incredibly different human being personalities are. Takes all kinds, I guess. So I now have three jobs. Certainly not where I thought I would end up. Flexible though, and that is awesome. I cherish being able to spend time with Jaxon, take him to all of these appointments and school field trips.

Baby nephew is doing fabulously:
IMG_1367 IMG_1361

He's so teeny and he looks like a turtle. And we shall call him turtle and have all sorts of things for him that are turtle-themed and by the time he reaches a certain age he will hate any mention of the word turtle. Oh, and let's not talk about how our pleather hand-me-down couch is falling apart and how Momo is digging the stuffing out of it and eating it.

Much to do before I start to get ready for tonight's resto shift, so I'd better getonit. Huh...I miss blathering on about my life.

xog

Gratitude: For my life right now, just exactly the way it is.

April 15, 2009

Purging.......Packing.....It's Official.

We're moving!
Into a 3 bedroom, 2-floor space in our same building.
Storage? Outrageous.
Potential? Enormous.
We are VERY excited.

All while under construction. Fun.
But really, what better time to pack up all your shit and get the fuck out and into something new? Even if new =same dark and noisy building. At least there will be fresh newness up in our house. And what's the worst that can come of it? That we over-light the place? 'Xactly.

Oh but I have a job on my hands....
I'm stopping that thought pattern for now.

Painting. Vying for a show in the next couple of months.
Hopefully Havanna.

OK getting back to cleaning.

xog

April 12, 2009

Rain and floods and easter dinner

All of that going on and so much more.

One of the construction workers forgot to replace the drainpipe from the roof on Thursday afternoon, so with all of the rain over the last couple of days (being deposited directly into the trench surrounding the entire building), we now have two flooded suites. Call the site supervisor (of course no one mentioned anything to me until today because they don't read signs and don't attend meetings and/or don't listen) who promptly said he would have the foreman come right over. Happy Easter!

Meanwhile, Colleen is cooking lamb in the rotisserie (sp?), the boys are busy playing (old one plugged in, smaller one "multi-tasking" with his friend, which means watching a movie, playing pokemon cards and drawing all at the same time) and I'm taking a moment for myself before I head back upstairs to help with dinner.

I've been knitting a hat, painting and not scrapbooking at all. Haven't done a Dare in ever-so long. I'm not happy about that at all. It comes, it goes, and right now I'm in a gone period. Please come back to me!

I did however accomplish designing a reservation book for Me & Julio and it's the bomb. Totally customized and it will make everyone's life easier; including mine because I get nasty when reservations get screwed up or over-booked. So there.

And Rhi skyped me this last week, which I love.

Graphic-designers-in-love
Happy Easter!


March 31, 2009

Detroit Redwing Fong

Baby X. No Name Fong. But he's soooooo cute.
Dren wanted to name him Empire.
We'll see what happens. They have 30 days.

October 2008 to March 30 2009 486
BabyX-ContactSheet-001

March 30, 2009

also:

I have been checking out the work of Jesse Reno. Quite spectacular.
Ragdoll

woah dude!

I apologize to myself for letting it be so long between rambles. Thank you, Chris, for reminding me to update!

Things are looking up.

The last couple of weeks have been taken up by co-op stuff. The portable office, porta-potty (ew), fencing, and bigwigs arrive tomorrow onsite for the launch of construction. We've chopped down so many trees and plants and bushes during the past week - my heart hurts. But, I have to keep my mind focused on the long-term benefits and be thankful that this is finally happening for the building. Our co-op has been on the verge of being 'fixed' (ie: building envelope remediation due to being leaky) for about 8 years. Anyway! Eye on the prize! But it's busy, for usre.

We toured our new suite today. It's HUGE! I'm so excited. We are in the smallest 3 bedroom unit in our building and we're moving into one of the giggest. So much storage. Storage makes me giddy.

Two Mondays ago we travelled to Seschelt to get Jaxon's psych-ed assessment. The doctor was amazing with kids, and his house (which he practices out of) is right on the water. The first day the wind was up and the waves were crashing. It was so grey and cold, but so nice to look at from the inside. On our lunch break we found a cute cafe to have sandwiches at and then found a playground and pier in order to run about and burn off some steam. Well, for Jax to do that. Mum and I mostly huddled and tried to tuck our extremities into whatever warm space might be available while we chased J around the playground and along the pier. He seemed absolutely fine, and would have stayed for an hour, climbing the half-buried-in-the-sand sea-monster, but with me trying to take photos without frost-biting my fingers right off, things quickly came to an end. We talked about 'coming back someday' (is that wrong??) and he seemed satisfied.

We will receive the report on April 15 and I'm excited and anxious and nervous all at the same time. I want more information, so I know how to interact with my kid, and so I know what to tell the school about how he learns. I am really looking forward to having meetings with his grade two teacher and developing strategies to help him cope at school. She is amazing. I look forward to obtaining more ammunition to deal with my child as a child, and not as a badly-behaved scoundrel, or a child who 'might not be getting enough sleep'. "Oh, wow..." they say, with genuine surprise in their voice, when I answer the question 'how much sleep is he getting?' 9-10 hours. Normal, right? Huh. Go figure. But then again, we just learned new info about J. Maybe he's not getting the right type of sleep. Maybe his sinuses are plugged and he can't have a solid sleep. I know he snores. Damn...do I know he snores. And something about adnoids? Anyway, wow. There's lots going on there.

Both works are good. steady, and good, and right now, almost like down time. The restaurant is fun, and Sunday brunch is getting busier what with the patio open. Now we have live jazz guitar/singing guy (his name is Charlie) and in a couple of weeks we're getting the full Brunch menu back, which Shelome fought tooth and nail for. Bennys, banana-stuffed french toast, sweet-potato waffles...yuuuuum. Patio season is upon us!!!!! Just for now we might need some winter coats and heat-lamps....

Moving. Fuck.
I better get back to cleaning my office. We all know how I like to proctrastinate.

Oh but wait! I am a new aunty! No-name Fong was born last Monday morning after I had stayed up all night with my husband....

He is SO cute. Helped Aley give him his first bath at home on Thursday. Watched him fall asleep in my arms. Quizzed Aley about the name. He is so wonderful. Photos from just first born from cell phone.

xog

Beautiful Boy

2-52-7

February 15, 2009

The Weekend Update

My desk is still messy. But I'm cleaning in between keystrokes!

I'm totally in love with embroidery floss right now. It's a colour/texture thing.

The weekend was crazy @ Me & Julio. I'm just wondering if I can actually handle it. After the weekend, my body feels OLD. Seriously, I need to figure out supplements or something. The cleanse was really good for me - I haven't been eating much dairy, wheat, tropical fruit, flour, etc. All the cleanse food. Still on it. But, probably not eating quite enough. Need to prepare again for healthy eating; ie: lots of smal meals, focus on protein and veg.

Watching Sex and the City, Season One, Episode One. I don't think I'll ever tire of this. Seems every time I run out of new stuff to watch in my office while cleaning, doing bookkeeping or sorting papers or supplies, I can pop this in from the very beginning and being entertained. And the first one is so cheesy compared to the more recent seasons! She is talking to the audience and looking right into the camera - ew creepy! But there's something kind of retro about it for me. A piece of my youth, if you will. Ew. Double Ew!!!

I need to do so many things/cards/gift creatively. I have to catch up on last week's dare but I'm so stuck! Band names. Evolved out of an email chain sent betwen the 6 of us. I love having more of us. More energy, more spirit, the more the marrier! AND, speaking of which, they completely rocked it. I LOVE to see what everyone produces every week. Sweet. And I WILL catch up.

I've been saving favourite t-shirts of J's since a long time. I'm going to start a book of them. Just shirts - they might have a logo or a design or something really cool on them and Jax loved them so I've kept them I love that boy more each and every day and I want to remember every moment until I'm one hundred and one.

xog

gratitude: for the weekend being over so my physical torture is done; now the mental can  begin. ha!

ps. I have absolutely NO gratitude for my computer right now, which is re-launching the finder about every 60 seconds. Fucking dinosaur.

February 12, 2009

messy desk

Messydesk1
Messydesk2

So, I'm living and working in a very messy zone. I used to have two different 'ends' to my desk - one side was strictly work, with the computer, and the other side 'art' with desk space. It didn't work for me. This is working for me mentally but practically? A little awkward, to say the least. I'm nothing, if not a little awkward. I mess it up, I clean it up. And so it goes.

I started this blog post about...mmm...3 hours and 23 minutes ago. And so it goes.

I have a gazillion dollars worth of receipts to record and send in to the insurance company.

I'm on my 3rd movie of the day. While working/blogging/everything-else-ing. Needless to say, I have a kink in my neck.

I love rounding corners of paper. Just love it.

I love vintage and otherwise interesting lace. Looooove it!

Did a little wedding invitation consult tonight. Should be fun.

So annoying - lots of workwork to do, and then I'm working all weekend. Dumb.

I had pizza for dinner. I think the wheat might have made me high.

I need bobbypins. My hair is so annoying. SO SO SO annoying.

Please let people not be assholes tomorrow night at the door. Please.

I need a paper calendar. NEED. I thought I had an appt. today, but it's tomorrow.

Got lost in Surrey last night. Ended up driving half-way home again before the next exit to turn around and do the whole thing over again. Come ON.

Jax had his heart set on finishing Valentine's for each and every one of his 19 classmates and two teachers. Bless his super cute heart.

Time for a refill. I hope everyone is having a wondering evening/day/week/month/whatever. Send me clean and organized vibes. Lots. Times infinity.

xog

Gratitude? Ugh.
For the little bit of sunshine creeping ever so slowly our way. It's you, or the rain. Come on, sun, come on!

February 09, 2009

i love boxes, i love packaging.

I always keep boxes. I have a cute collection. Hopefully someday I'll have an office/art room that allows me space to display some stuff. I do have Momo's graveyard of stuffies on a shelf and a freaky McDonald's happy meal toy from the Wizard of Oz that Jaxon wanted to throw in the garbage. I don't know, there's something I like about it. Besides, why bother paying the extra $0.97 for the toy if you're going to throw it away? Ugh...kids these days...

I received this today!
D44fe03ae7a07f8990fae110.L
It's SO cute! It's a grid-paper-wrapped, illustrated box, holding the composition book full of design ideas & inspiration. There is a huge variety of scrapbookers/papercrafters/artists which is nice to see - I like fresh. I didn't know how it would be packaged, and I'm impressed. Unique. Hi there. What. A. Concept. Yay! for Claudine (who is a total gem). I'm definitely looking forward to perusing it further.

I've been scrapbooking a little bit (slowly...one page might take me 3 days to complete) and trying to catch up on past Dares. I really love The Dares. They were seriously one of the largest points of inspiration and motivation when I first started scrapbooking. It's been nicing adding another new girl to the crazy crew and it's nice to be back to regular weekly projects. My latest love is watching a dvd or dvd-r with trashy shows on it and surfing/writing/being creative. A little bit of brain working, a little bit of not.

We finished our cleanse and loved it! Again! Even though I felt like complete crap for a solid 3 days last week...still don't know if that was cleanse-induced or the real flu. I haven't eaten pasta or bread or anything with any sugar flour, wheat, vinegar, alcohol, etc. for two weeks. Wait, that's a lie as of last night. We went out to celebrate the end of the cleanse last night. La Brasserie and then Lolita's where it was very loud and happening. Obviously I'm not one to visit the nightclubs anymore, but seriously...it was way loud. I finally (feeling old) said...rather, shouted to Shelome "It's realy fucking loud in here!" And she yelled back "I know! They're trying to get everyone to leave!!". It was true. So much quieter after they were able to get the regulars out, lock the doors and leave only friends. Lots of laughter, chatter, gooooood food (& desert!!) and of course, wine. And lots and lots of water (thank god).

I have things to do before I call it a night. Off to get them done now. While watching Gossip Girl on dvd-r!!! I have to keep rewinding it because I get distracted and then I miss stuff!!

xog

Gratitude: for the most wonderful girlfriends and girl could ever have. Life is full and fine.