Now all I have to do is go down to the DMV out in pack-a-lunchville, aka Mount Pearl, and do my written test. That'll get me my Class 6, Level I license. Woohoo! I meant to get out there this week... might do that tomorrow. I spent a few minutes studying the section on "signs" in the driver's handbook.
Funny thing there... my instructor told us that people go to write the test, fail the section on signs, and hop back in their cars to drive home! Um... failure to recognize what the signs mean?? Huh? They're allowed to DRIVE?! Ack! No wonder there's so many g.d. weirdos on the road!!
Anyway... Paul let me (okay, he encouraged me) drive his KLX 250 up and down the road beside our house yesterday. There I was, all geared up and ready to go for the 1-minute up-and-down jaunt. Stalled the bike. Stalled the bike again. And again. and again and again and again... I totally couldn't seem to get the hang of the clutch! After about 10 minutes solid of standing there poking the starter with my thumb, holding the clutch, releasing the brake, giving it gas, letting out the clutch... bike would lurch then stall... I FINALLY managed to get up the road! Woohoo!!! Up the road to the church parking lot, turn around and go down our road to Dominion Hill where I turned around in the muck (eww), managed to get about 20 yards up the road, tried to gear back down to first, *cough* die. Damn. I spent another 10 minutes trying to move up the hill under the bike's steam.
I should mention that the part I enjoyed most about the riding was the actual riding. I mean, wow... it's so much fun to be tooling up the road, legs tight against the tank, swaying with the curve in the road in perfect harmony with the bike. Definitely an enjoyable experience that I'm looking forward to repeating!
Now to move on the less enjoyable part.
Paul made me do exercises in going and stopping and going again. You know, pretend like I'm at a stop sign or red light... brake the bike, idle, go again. Hah... not happening. If I were really in traffic with a truck barreling up behind me... let's just say that I should probably be practicing a dump-and-jump manoeuvre. Well, I did manage to get it up as far as our driveway via the lurch-and-go method, then finally managed to get it cruising once more, so up to the church again. By this time I'd been out for an hour or so, it was starting to get dark (just starting, mind you) and my hands were cramping. It was fun while it lasted. Time to go inside.
Kyle told me that it took him a week of trying to get up to the church. I guess I'm doing well then.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Watching the U of Wpg's convocation on a Webcast
Well, it's another weather-odd day in Newfoundland and I'm sitting in front of the computer watching the live webcast of the U of Wpg's convocation!!! My daughter was just on a little while ago. I cried. I really wish I could be there, but it's nice that they offer the web option for those, like us, who are away. Paul and I sat together and waited for her 5 seconds of fame, then sent her a text message. Paul, being Paul, said to tell her to stop picking her nose... I did... Good thing she's got a sense of humor and rebutted with a "U saw that? I hoped you hadn't!" ... *sigh*
What's new in our family these days? Well, Sean, the eldest at 26 is taking a Construction Electrician course at Academy Canada. It will include an apprenticeship program and he's doing very well in it so far. He's been able to brag several times that he's gotten 100% in his exams! Way to go, Sean!
Kyle is now the Assistant Manager at the Irving Circle K store that he's been working at for the past year. No more school for him. He dropped out of the Physics program last year and has no immediate intentions of returning to university. Every now and then he mentions hair styling as a career option...
Both boys plan to return to Manitoba eventually... in fact, I suspect they'll both be heading there as soon as they can. *sigh* I'll miss them.
Dana's graduation doesn't mean the end of studies for her. She plans to attend the U of Manitoba to become a Dietician. A 2-year post-degree program. I wish they had a program here at MUN, but they don't... in fact, they had a 4-year program that they were talking about dropping altogether.
Moving on...
The weather here is up-and-down. It can't seem to make up its mind whether to let summer arrive or not. Spring-like weather means we're still getting holy-poop rainstorms, heavy fog, and the occasional sunny day. Not necessarily warm on the sunny day. Two days ago we had a lovely warm shower! It was like standing in a sauna. I managed to get a bit of colour on my face by virtue of helping with the stream clean-up behind my friend's place. I also managed to get bitten by almost every darned black fly in the swampy area! Itchy doesn't begin to describe the feeling. By the 2nd day I gave in and took an anti-histamine to alleviate the horrible itch! Unfortunately it was a "drowsy" formula... didn't know that when I went to fetch Sean. Hmmm... what a zoned-out feeling that was. I made darned sure that Sean drove home while I let my mind wander in la-la land by itself. I didn't take the next tablet until bedtime!!
Oooh! New thing! Paul FINALLY persuaded me to take a motorcycle training course. *sigh* Yes. I'm going to try to become a "motorcycle mama." It's a 2-day course. Friday is in a classroom, Sunday is in the parking lot on a motorcycle. *gulp* Keep your fingers crossed for me! I'm very nervous. But resolved. If all else fails, it will get Paul off my back. At best, I'll be able to ride Kyle's cute little Buell Blast every now and then.
Painting continues apace. Three golden retrievers in one painting. As a break from that painting, I've been working on a cute portrait of our little Niki-girl. She's much easier to do. Gee... I wonder why. Oh yeah... I have her right here as a model. I've also got an excellent photo that I'm working from. I have to literally yank myself away from that canvas to get to work on the commissioned one. Ah well... Fortunately Alia keeps me on the straight-and-narrow.
Next painting will be of the turkey chicks from next door. I've got new chicks to photograph and an old photo from a couple of years ago to use as the background. They're adorable-looking things. Much like chicken-chicks, but taller and with bigger feet. As they get older, they look very much like the "just add water" monsters from Marvin the Martian (remember Bugs Bunny?). Still cute, but kind of bizarre.
~ Christine
Look 'em in the eye: FREE Messenger video chat Chat Now!
What's new in our family these days? Well, Sean, the eldest at 26 is taking a Construction Electrician course at Academy Canada. It will include an apprenticeship program and he's doing very well in it so far. He's been able to brag several times that he's gotten 100% in his exams! Way to go, Sean!
Kyle is now the Assistant Manager at the Irving Circle K store that he's been working at for the past year. No more school for him. He dropped out of the Physics program last year and has no immediate intentions of returning to university. Every now and then he mentions hair styling as a career option...
Both boys plan to return to Manitoba eventually... in fact, I suspect they'll both be heading there as soon as they can. *sigh* I'll miss them.
Dana's graduation doesn't mean the end of studies for her. She plans to attend the U of Manitoba to become a Dietician. A 2-year post-degree program. I wish they had a program here at MUN, but they don't... in fact, they had a 4-year program that they were talking about dropping altogether.
Moving on...
The weather here is up-and-down. It can't seem to make up its mind whether to let summer arrive or not. Spring-like weather means we're still getting holy-poop rainstorms, heavy fog, and the occasional sunny day. Not necessarily warm on the sunny day. Two days ago we had a lovely warm shower! It was like standing in a sauna. I managed to get a bit of colour on my face by virtue of helping with the stream clean-up behind my friend's place. I also managed to get bitten by almost every darned black fly in the swampy area! Itchy doesn't begin to describe the feeling. By the 2nd day I gave in and took an anti-histamine to alleviate the horrible itch! Unfortunately it was a "drowsy" formula... didn't know that when I went to fetch Sean. Hmmm... what a zoned-out feeling that was. I made darned sure that Sean drove home while I let my mind wander in la-la land by itself. I didn't take the next tablet until bedtime!!
Oooh! New thing! Paul FINALLY persuaded me to take a motorcycle training course. *sigh* Yes. I'm going to try to become a "motorcycle mama." It's a 2-day course. Friday is in a classroom, Sunday is in the parking lot on a motorcycle. *gulp* Keep your fingers crossed for me! I'm very nervous. But resolved. If all else fails, it will get Paul off my back. At best, I'll be able to ride Kyle's cute little Buell Blast every now and then.
Painting continues apace. Three golden retrievers in one painting. As a break from that painting, I've been working on a cute portrait of our little Niki-girl. She's much easier to do. Gee... I wonder why. Oh yeah... I have her right here as a model. I've also got an excellent photo that I'm working from. I have to literally yank myself away from that canvas to get to work on the commissioned one. Ah well... Fortunately Alia keeps me on the straight-and-narrow.
Next painting will be of the turkey chicks from next door. I've got new chicks to photograph and an old photo from a couple of years ago to use as the background. They're adorable-looking things. Much like chicken-chicks, but taller and with bigger feet. As they get older, they look very much like the "just add water" monsters from Marvin the Martian (remember Bugs Bunny?). Still cute, but kind of bizarre.
~ Christine
Look 'em in the eye: FREE Messenger video chat Chat Now!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
The weather outside is frightful...
but I think I'll put a fire on tonight. Seriously, it can't seem to make up its mind whether to rain, snow, or shine. Our swimming pool is "open," but unheated for now, and not likely to see any swimmers until it stays sunny for more than a few hours at a time. The hot tub is still getting plenty of use.
Paul and Kyle have their motorcycles out already. Paul's a die-hard biker, so that's hardly a surprise. Kyle only bikes on the nice days.
Nothing much has been happening in our corner of the world lately. Well, we did go to the Dominican Republic in January. That was pretty great. This is the decade-birthday year for Paul, Alia, Miranda and myself, so we hooked up with Pat and Joe (also turning over a new decade this year) and spent a week basking in the sunshine, going on excursions, and generally recharging our batteries and boosting our tans. Wait... did I already mention that in an earlier blog? Eh. Whatever. It was great fun and bears repeating.
We lost a furry member of the family in March. Nibbles, our sweet little old and frail kitty/ferret (depending on who you talked to) went to what some people euphemistically call "The Rainbow Bridge." Kyle misses her. :( I think Sean's cat, Baby, also misses her. He's taken to grappling hard-core with Niki! He also chases after her when I'm trying to get her back upstairs, drags her down the stairs, then taunts and wrestles her to "his" room where he proceeds to give her a good tongue-lashing. Seriously. He spent about 10 minutes licking the dog while keeping her pinned down. He's the same size as the dog, so it's pretty funny.
I finally got around to painting the downstairs room which has been both studio and spare room. Yes. Sadly, I said farewell to the HIDEOUS teletubbies and farmyard scene that the previous owner had painted on the wall. Ucky ucky ucky... It was also a hideous colour. Little Boy Blue blue with bright primary yellow trim. Gag me. It's a lovely orangey toffee colour now. Not quite pumpkin-coloured. Warm and cozy with bronze-toned drapes. Sean helped hang the drapes. :)
Hmmm.. I took up sewing for a while. Miranda and her classmates got into American Girl dolls, nearly half of them getting a doll for Christmas, and the clothes was pretty pricey. So... I made some nice outfits for Miranda and a few for her friends' birthdays. There's still more fabric, so I guess I'm not done yet.
I also started redecorating the living room last month. It's looking pretty good. We removed the decorator rugs, and I use that term loosely, as no decorator worth their salt should've installed those hideous (yes, there's that word again) green and pink and cream rugs in a living room! Canadian Tire came through with a matching pair of multi-coloured area rugs with circles in squares ... which sounds weirder than it looks. Kent had a put-it-together-yourself shelf unit which is great for holding/displaying all my knitting supplies/yarns. Costco had these sweet wire mesh units that allow you to put together a combination of cube configurations. Games and puzzles and books, oh my... All easy to see! I'm still on the look-out for a large shelf-type unit for books and display. Nothing's crossed my path yet. The year's still young.
If you go over to my other blog post, (Click on "View Complete Profile" and it gives you a new page where you can see the link to my other blog site - Charmed by Christine) you'll see that I started drawing again. Yayyy... It's so much fun to get back into that, but it sure takes up a lot of time. The sketching and drawing stage of a commission is done, and I'm going to get into the painting stage tomorrow. I'm excited!! I hope he/she likes the finished product.
Sean and Miranda are cooking chili, so I'm off the hook for dinner! Since I can't think of anything else to add to a fairly boring blurb, I'll say good-bye for now. Good-bye!
Paul and Kyle have their motorcycles out already. Paul's a die-hard biker, so that's hardly a surprise. Kyle only bikes on the nice days.
Nothing much has been happening in our corner of the world lately. Well, we did go to the Dominican Republic in January. That was pretty great. This is the decade-birthday year for Paul, Alia, Miranda and myself, so we hooked up with Pat and Joe (also turning over a new decade this year) and spent a week basking in the sunshine, going on excursions, and generally recharging our batteries and boosting our tans. Wait... did I already mention that in an earlier blog? Eh. Whatever. It was great fun and bears repeating.
We lost a furry member of the family in March. Nibbles, our sweet little old and frail kitty/ferret (depending on who you talked to) went to what some people euphemistically call "The Rainbow Bridge." Kyle misses her. :( I think Sean's cat, Baby, also misses her. He's taken to grappling hard-core with Niki! He also chases after her when I'm trying to get her back upstairs, drags her down the stairs, then taunts and wrestles her to "his" room where he proceeds to give her a good tongue-lashing. Seriously. He spent about 10 minutes licking the dog while keeping her pinned down. He's the same size as the dog, so it's pretty funny.
I finally got around to painting the downstairs room which has been both studio and spare room. Yes. Sadly, I said farewell to the HIDEOUS teletubbies and farmyard scene that the previous owner had painted on the wall. Ucky ucky ucky... It was also a hideous colour. Little Boy Blue blue with bright primary yellow trim. Gag me. It's a lovely orangey toffee colour now. Not quite pumpkin-coloured. Warm and cozy with bronze-toned drapes. Sean helped hang the drapes. :)
Hmmm.. I took up sewing for a while. Miranda and her classmates got into American Girl dolls, nearly half of them getting a doll for Christmas, and the clothes was pretty pricey. So... I made some nice outfits for Miranda and a few for her friends' birthdays. There's still more fabric, so I guess I'm not done yet.
I also started redecorating the living room last month. It's looking pretty good. We removed the decorator rugs, and I use that term loosely, as no decorator worth their salt should've installed those hideous (yes, there's that word again) green and pink and cream rugs in a living room! Canadian Tire came through with a matching pair of multi-coloured area rugs with circles in squares ... which sounds weirder than it looks. Kent had a put-it-together-yourself shelf unit which is great for holding/displaying all my knitting supplies/yarns. Costco had these sweet wire mesh units that allow you to put together a combination of cube configurations. Games and puzzles and books, oh my... All easy to see! I'm still on the look-out for a large shelf-type unit for books and display. Nothing's crossed my path yet. The year's still young.
If you go over to my other blog post, (Click on "View Complete Profile" and it gives you a new page where you can see the link to my other blog site - Charmed by Christine) you'll see that I started drawing again. Yayyy... It's so much fun to get back into that, but it sure takes up a lot of time. The sketching and drawing stage of a commission is done, and I'm going to get into the painting stage tomorrow. I'm excited!! I hope he/she likes the finished product.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Further to the broken dryer and water under the house episode:
(When it rains, it pours)
the dryer broke down AGAIN at Christmas while Dana was visiting. It took even longer for the actual service this time. Sure, the appliance guy came out, but we didn't get the actual part in place until January while we were away in the Dominican Republic. The appliance guy speculates that it might be the hose that's the problem. Paul crawled under the house (NEVER CRAWL UNDER THE HOUSE!!!) and found that we have a flexible hose running from one side of the building all the way to the other before venting outside. Yes, that's a problem. It should be a lot closer to the actual appliance. The big problem with that is the bloody air exchangers. They're in the same room as the dryer and the vent for the dryer has to be "a certain distance" (as yet undefined by a professional) away from the intake for the air exchangers. No big surprise. This has not yet been resolved. Give me a little more time! I promise I'll call today. *sigh*
Further to the visit from the Mutt and Jeff plumbers, Inc... The moisture problem in the basement is NOT due to ground water seeping from our backyard. The town had to repair a water line across the road from us. It seems there was a broken pipe running alongside the roadway, gushing water under the tarmac and (big surprise) into our basement. I've been afraid to send Paul to the basement (are you surprised?) to see how the moisture situation is doing. Do we still need a sump pump? A de-humidifier? I don't know!!!! *sigh*
the dryer broke down AGAIN at Christmas while Dana was visiting. It took even longer for the actual service this time. Sure, the appliance guy came out, but we didn't get the actual part in place until January while we were away in the Dominican Republic. The appliance guy speculates that it might be the hose that's the problem. Paul crawled under the house (NEVER CRAWL UNDER THE HOUSE!!!) and found that we have a flexible hose running from one side of the building all the way to the other before venting outside. Yes, that's a problem. It should be a lot closer to the actual appliance. The big problem with that is the bloody air exchangers. They're in the same room as the dryer and the vent for the dryer has to be "a certain distance" (as yet undefined by a professional) away from the intake for the air exchangers. No big surprise. This has not yet been resolved. Give me a little more time! I promise I'll call today. *sigh*
Further to the visit from the Mutt and Jeff plumbers, Inc... The moisture problem in the basement is NOT due to ground water seeping from our backyard. The town had to repair a water line across the road from us. It seems there was a broken pipe running alongside the roadway, gushing water under the tarmac and (big surprise) into our basement. I've been afraid to send Paul to the basement (are you surprised?) to see how the moisture situation is doing. Do we still need a sump pump? A de-humidifier? I don't know!!!! *sigh*
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Keeping in touch...
via The Blog.
I'm sending you the link to my blog. It'll show up in your e-mail each time I publish a new blog. Sorry sweetie.
I figure this is one way that I can ensure that the important people in my life (You now know who you are) can hear from me on a semi-regular basis.
Laugh out loud.
Groan at the bad humor.
Think of me.
Love, Chris
I'm sending you the link to my blog. It'll show up in your e-mail each time I publish a new blog. Sorry sweetie.
I figure this is one way that I can ensure that the important people in my life (You now know who you are) can hear from me on a semi-regular basis.
Laugh out loud.
Groan at the bad humor.
Think of me.
"Can I help who's next?" ... WTF??!!!
Am I the only one who hears that phrase at the local Timmy's and cringes? I hope not! It's not just a Newfoundland thing, as I recall hearing it years ago in Manitoba while standing in line at yet another Timmy's.
Is there some sort of correlation there? It seems to me that I only heard it at Timmy's, ... unless that was the only place my student-self stood in line long enough to hear it.
It's grammatically unattractive. "Can I help who is next?" Yes, yes! You know and I know that they really mean "Can I help the next person?" But how hard is it to say that correctly?
What about "Hi, can I help you?" or "Next, please!"
Nowadays I hear it nearly everywhere I go. Standing in line at Chapter's, the teller beckons me with a "Can I help who's next." Starbucks. Mary Brown's. McDonald's. It goes on!!!
I want to go over and 1) Educate them, and 2) Smack them. Not necessarily in that order.
Is there some sort of correlation there? It seems to me that I only heard it at Timmy's, ... unless that was the only place my student-self stood in line long enough to hear it.
It's grammatically unattractive. "Can I help who is next?" Yes, yes! You know and I know that they really mean "Can I help the next person?" But how hard is it to say that correctly?
What about "Hi, can I help you?" or "Next, please!"
Nowadays I hear it nearly everywhere I go. Standing in line at Chapter's, the teller beckons me with a "Can I help who's next." Starbucks. Mary Brown's. McDonald's. It goes on!!!
I want to go over and 1) Educate them, and 2) Smack them. Not necessarily in that order.
Monday, February 1, 2010
It's a PUREBRED!!! ... *sarcastic snort*
I've read about them, I've heard about them, but I've never actually run into one of them in person. Until yesterday.
What's that, you say? I'm talking about those gullible people who acquire "designer dogs" and in all innocence claim that their dogs are "purebred!" *gaack!!*
I bumped into a woman and her children the other night while I was out with my Niki-girl. The kids clustered around and patted the puppy and began talking about their pup. "It's a designer dog" one little girl lisped. The mother explained that it's part pug and part beagle. I opened my mouth to wonder what kind of dog that would look like when it was fully-grown (???!!) and the woman continued to astound me by announcing that "It's a PUREBRED!"
I actually gaped at her. A few seconds went by while my mouth hung open in disbelief. Then I started to explain that a dog with different breeds as its parents couldn't possibly be a purebred when I realized that this woman had joined the hundreds, nay, THOUSANDS, of gullible people who have been brainwashed into believing that their valuable dollars have been spent on a "designer dog."
When did that happen? Seriously? When? It used to be that when your dog jumped the fence and got caught by another dog not of the same breed, the resulting puppies would be called "mutts, Heinz 57's, or cross-breds." The puppies would be sold for pennies, given away, or even stuffed into a sack and thrown in the river for disposal. (harsh!)
Not today! Today these same dogs are eagerly sought after, bred by what we used to call "backyard breeders" and given the fancy-schmancy name of "Designer Dogs."
Pug + Beagle = Puggle
Labrador + Poodle = Labradoodle
It just goes on and on! It's crazy!! We used to GIVE these dogs away, and now the "breeders" are selling them for hundreds of dollars apiece! If only I'd known, I would've started breeding these mutts *ahem* "designer dogs" myself when I had the chance!
Nahhhh... then again, I really like knowing with a greater degree of reliability what my dog's going to be like. While Oslo, the malamute was a brute, at least I knew what to expect of him. I like knowing that my little Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is the result of many years of careful breeding to get the very best of her breed. Sure, there's good and bad in that. I recognize that. However, careful and conscientious breeders take pride and care to get the very best puppies by watching not only the conformation and temperament, but the health of their breeders.
Hybrid vigour is all well and fine. Some of the best dogs I've had have been crossbreds. There was never any pretentious posturing on anybody's part to call it a "designer dog" and give it some made-up half-assed name. My dogs were proudly called "MUTTS!"
What's that, you say? I'm talking about those gullible people who acquire "designer dogs" and in all innocence claim that their dogs are "purebred!" *gaack!!*
I bumped into a woman and her children the other night while I was out with my Niki-girl. The kids clustered around and patted the puppy and began talking about their pup. "It's a designer dog" one little girl lisped. The mother explained that it's part pug and part beagle. I opened my mouth to wonder what kind of dog that would look like when it was fully-grown (???!!) and the woman continued to astound me by announcing that "It's a PUREBRED!"
I actually gaped at her. A few seconds went by while my mouth hung open in disbelief. Then I started to explain that a dog with different breeds as its parents couldn't possibly be a purebred when I realized that this woman had joined the hundreds, nay, THOUSANDS, of gullible people who have been brainwashed into believing that their valuable dollars have been spent on a "designer dog."
When did that happen? Seriously? When? It used to be that when your dog jumped the fence and got caught by another dog not of the same breed, the resulting puppies would be called "mutts, Heinz 57's, or cross-breds." The puppies would be sold for pennies, given away, or even stuffed into a sack and thrown in the river for disposal. (harsh!)
Not today! Today these same dogs are eagerly sought after, bred by what we used to call "backyard breeders" and given the fancy-schmancy name of "Designer Dogs."
Pug + Beagle = Puggle
Labrador + Poodle = Labradoodle
It just goes on and on! It's crazy!! We used to GIVE these dogs away, and now the "breeders" are selling them for hundreds of dollars apiece! If only I'd known, I would've started breeding these mutts *ahem* "designer dogs" myself when I had the chance!
Nahhhh... then again, I really like knowing with a greater degree of reliability what my dog's going to be like. While Oslo, the malamute was a brute, at least I knew what to expect of him. I like knowing that my little Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is the result of many years of careful breeding to get the very best of her breed. Sure, there's good and bad in that. I recognize that. However, careful and conscientious breeders take pride and care to get the very best puppies by watching not only the conformation and temperament, but the health of their breeders.
Hybrid vigour is all well and fine. Some of the best dogs I've had have been crossbreds. There was never any pretentious posturing on anybody's part to call it a "designer dog" and give it some made-up half-assed name. My dogs were proudly called "MUTTS!"
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Sunrise over Torbay