One Part Inspiration...

This: is my Self Thinking Stamp. I can hear you saying "What is a self-thinking stamp". I am glad you asked.  Here's how it went down: My phone transcribes voice messages.  It has some interesting ways of interpreting said messages. Sometime in December, I looked at my phone and saw this one: "Hello, Marin, this is Mary from Rico.  I have your self-thinking stamp here.  So...just let me know when you would like to pick it up". Just what I needed !  A Self-thinking stamp.  This will save me a bunch of time.  No more wondering what I should make for supper.  Or if I have paid the Hydro Bill this month.  My Self-thinking stamp will do it for me. If I have a big decision to make, I can just use the stamp and Voila!  My decision is made for me. Right at this very moment, my Self-thinking stamp is thinking that Marni needs some chocolate. And right after that, I predict it will be thinking that I should get away for a holiday...

Yesterday, my husband and I had a chance to take a quick trip to a favourite spot - we have lots of memories wrapped up in one lake. We have holidayed there, we have had community beach parties, we have shopped, and wandered through the streets and down to the hot springs.   We decided to add to our treasure book of memories. We started down the road towards one park, but found ourselves at a completely different - yet familiar - side of the lake - and all because I said turn right instead of left . Not too far from the beach is a tree that has our initials on it.  My husband carved them before we got married. Although we didn't end up hiking up to see the tree, we talked about it as we sat and watched a blended family play at the beach. We compared the kids to ours at that age - the older sister who never liked her brother trying to get her wet. - the younger brother who could think of a million ways to douse his sister, and the youngest boy,  whose gre...

Some of you who read my blog on a regular basis know I love a garage sale.  I haven't done too much of it in the past several years, because Pancake Breakfast generally takes precedence. However, in the last few weeks, I have been out several times. The first time was the day our # 1 son left to fly away for an out-of-town job.  It was a very hard day for me.  I tried my hardest to put on my big girl panties and not cry too much.  I took four kleenex with me, and told myself that when I had used them all up, I had to move on.  It didn't work that well, but I got some great deals at the garage sales my husband took me to, in a desperate effort to distract me from my sorrow.  I mean, who can resist a 40-ish-ish woman with red-rimmed eyes and a drippy nose offering 25 cents for the vase on the garage sale table? I didn't go for a couple more weeks.  Other things came in between me and the 'deal of the century'.  One was a weekend getaway tha...

The question of the day was " What One Word Describes Your Life Today ?"  My response was immediate. "FLUX". For the first time, I am not able to anticipate the rhythm of family life.  One day, the boys are home. The next they are not.  My daughter is  adjusting to married life, and checks in occasionally, but not predictably. My days have gone from keeping a"Mom's Calendar" -where I had to monitor everyone's schedules and keep track of which child I dropped off where and when- to hoping that the kids will lock up after they get home, because I have gone to bed long before they arrive home for the night.  Sometimes I don't catch sight of them for a few days.  I only know they have been home because there are dishes waiting to be stacked in the dishwasher. It is a very weird and wonderful place to be in.  If I want to pick up and go, I can.  My husband and I do not have to plan ahead to go on dates.  We can just spontaneously ask each...

I've gotten out my summer clothes. I've put away my winter clothes. I've done laundry. I've vacuumed. I've cleaned the washrooms. I've dusted. I've washed windows. I've cleaned out my freezer. I've written letters. I've gone shopping. I've written reports. I've phoned a friend. I've planned parties. I've consulted about wedding flowers. Taxes are due in two days.   I am an expert in protaxtination.

Yesterday, I went on a mad rush of clean up.  I was anticipating hosting a birthday party at The Pokeaway, and I wanted the house to look like it never does.  I got out the vacuum and the duster and the cleaning cloths and went to town. I don't know what it is like when you clean, but my cleaning sprees usually result in finding myself on some sort of organizational bunny trails. In order to vacuum, the floors have to be cleared - this means little bits of laundry get picked up, and taken downstairs, random empty pop cans taken to the recycling, garbages emptied, and other items which have found their way out of hiding get put back in their spots. I was on a roll.  I had a time limit, because we had decided to get the tree in the evening, and cleaning had to be finished before the tree could be got. I entered the first bedroom. My #1 son has moved into his sister's bedroom.  He doesn't want any vestiges of her belongings mixed up in his, so he made libera...

This week, I was looking for excuses not to go over the material that would be on my final exam for Floral Design Basics 1.  This seemed the perfect video to encourage me.  It made me laugh and I thought I'd share it with you.

We did it!  We made it through another school year.  PHEW!  Now there's only those pesky exams left.  Exams schmams.  We are all relieved.  We want to revel in our accomplishments before we have to dig in to studying. We have made it a tradition to celebrate the end of school by taking the student(s) out for dinner.  That's what we did last night.  His choice.  And he drove.  During dinner, he suggested that we go to a movie. Normally on a Fried-ay  Friday night, we are in our jammies at 6:23 pm and settling in for a relaxing night at home, but we were having a great time celebrating the accomplishment of finishing the scholastic challenges and so we all went out to the movie. Friday night movies ain't what they used to be. Theaters are no longer the place to be on a Friday night.   There were only two other people in the theater.  It was like having a living room in another building.   I even took a blanket in ...

A couple weeks ago, on a Sunday, my husband and I were trying to decide what to do for the afternoon.  It was a hot and sunny day.  We thought of going for a bike ride, but our son had already commandeered the bikes.  So instead, we hopped in the truck and headed out to see where the day would take us.  We ended up at "Granny and Grumpa's".  This is a place we had heard about from a variety of people.  It's the stuff of legends.  " They have sooo much stuff; they might sell it to you, they might not ".  " There are no prices on anything.  You have to negotiate with them on their terms ." "It's amazing ." We knew it was fairly close to The Pokeaway.  Still it was a surprise to find it just down the road, make a left and then another left.  We spent several hours perusing their barns.  There was a sign that struck me funny posted on the first barn:  " We buy junk, and sell antiques " ...

Just after Christmas I purchased this SD card.  It was a bit of a splurge, but I had been wanting to get one, because I wanted to be able to enjoy more pictures on my digital frame that my daughter had bought us.  It has a much larger memory capacity. I brought it home, all pleased with myself, and put it away, The trouble was that I didn't remember where I had put it.  Our house is not that big. What I'm not using, is in storage. And yet, I couldn't find it  A.n.y.w.h.e.r.e. Every once-in-awhile I would go through my stuff to see if I could find it, but to no avail.  There it was.  Gone. Until last week.  I went on an errand to find a paper that I needed for another project.  I went through my stuff again, and for some reason, I looked in the area where I keep the phone book.  And guess what dropped out?!!!  YAY! 

I realize I haven't posted in a while.  Did anyone miss me?  Well, just in case, I should give a little explanation about my long(ish) absence.   I've been a little d.i.s.t.r.a.c.t.e.d. with s.u.m.m.e.r...... Plants to plant, hedges to trim, walks to go on, puppies to chase, weeds to pull, BBQ's to host, back decks to enjoy...trips to camp to make...it's been a tough job, but someone's had to do it.  ....M.o.r.e.   s.o.o.n.  ....

My daughter invited me to come to "Deaf, Deaf World" at her school one Saturday a few weeks ago.  It was a chance for students, volunteers and teachers to showcase what they experience every day.  My mother-in-law and her girls came with me.  It was so much fun.  We stopped at Timmies to help us on the trip.  Jake came too (Jake is my GPS - he has an Australian accent) to show us the way.  We got there in time to enjoy the whole shindig. They had organized the day by having each person receive a passport once their entry fee was paid.  Then it was up to each 'tourist' to choose the direction they would go.  No one was allowed to talk out loud.  We went to 'school' first, to learn a few signs to use and then had to make our way through the various stations, just using signs, and trying to understand what was being said to us.  All of us found it very challenging.  But it was a great experience to step into other people's shoes, who ...

On Sunday, I did something I haven't done in a while. I went to my daughter's soccer game. Not only that, but I drove five young people there. It brought me back to 'the old days' of weekends spent driving to sports, watching sports, going to the drive through on the way back to celebrate wins, or mop up losses. The difference now is, the size of the players. One of the girls on my daughter's team was over six feet. She made a handy post for one of the other team's players to slam up against. The weather was good. And most of the game was played in the light. It was a good afternoon.

After my last post, I have come up empty for blog material. I know, that might be a first. Still, I want to write about something, so I enlisted some help. I copied some ideas from one of these sites that gives you questions to answer when you have nothing else to do. For lack of better material, I am answering them. One day, soon, I may have a 'real post'. First thought when I wake up - hmmm...which time? I tend to wake up often in the night, and have to talk myself into going back to sleep. My best sleeps are in the afternoon. I can fall into the most lovely-dreamless-heavy- remember-nothing-but-rub-my-eyes-and-wonder-what-time-it-is sleeps in the afternoon. Not that I do it that often, but if I do, I feel like I have indulged myself in the most delicious way. Last thought before I fall asleep - " I sure hope I get a good sleep tonight ." and then a prayer: " Dear God, please , could you just allow me to have a good sleep ?" then, " I need to relax...

My ever-so-clever husband hooked me up with wireless. Yes, that's right. Wireless! Now I can sit and keep him company whenever I feel like blogging. I will look up briefly from my screen and hand him a screwdriver, or a flashlight, before I re-commence putting my thoughts down in cyberspace. It has been a really good holiday for us. It was the first one all year that we actually took together. What fun it was to go to bed late, and then get up whenever it suited us, and get a few more things done around the place. I feel a little sad to be heading back to 'normal' life, after a whole week of mucking around. There was plenty of chocloate around to keep the melatonin at safe levels, and we even did a bit of socializing which kept us in the loop with our new neighbours and well-known friends. Usually I find January a little dull. But there are many things to look forward to this month. I found some friends and relatives who have birthdays, so we can celebrate them. And I am lo...

2011 Just writing that makes me feel older. It always takes a few weeks to get used to writing the dates of a new year. And the beginning of the year begs some contemplation. So here's a few of mine: 11 Things I loved about 2010 11. Surprise friendships. 10. Sunsets at The Pokeaway. 09. Being physically closer to my inlaws. 08. Watching my son graduate and begin his grown-up life. 07. Date nights with my husband. (Sometimes during the day too :) 06. The Olympics. 05. Opening up the storage boxes to see what I'd been missing for the past year. 04. Long conversations with my siblings. 03. Rising to the challenge of preparing seminars on my area of expertise. 02. Working in various settings and in a variety of jobs. 01. Realizing dreams. 11 Things I don't want to do in 2011 11. Move. 10. Sort through stuff. 09. Buy more sheep. 08. Paint. 07. Get caught up in things that don't matter. 06. Play mindgames. 05. Buy useless gizmos. 04. Waste resources. 03. Too much laundry. ...

How very decadent we have become! My husband hooked up a laundry tub, so I no longer have to wash dishes in the bathroom sink. And he hooked up the portable dishwasher, so I can stack it up with all the bits and pieces we collect over the day, so the kitchen stays more tidy. Not only that, but he finished off the upstairs shower a couple of weeks ago, so we are no longer showering in saran wrap. I took the picture at a funny angle, so it makes it look crooked. But it's not. And look how clever he was to put the 'on' handle where you can reach in and turn it on, but not get showered with cold water! Not only that, but he hung the handles on the doors, so we can put a towel on the outside one. I'm so impressed. Today, he plans to put the baseboards on in the upstairs bathroom, so the toilet can go back on. Then we will have the choice of two toilets when nature calls. When it is installed, the person in the downstairs bathroom can read his magazine to his heart's con...

For the past year, weekend days have been marathons of work. After ten or more months of this, I started making jokes to my #2 son about "other people". We would pass people at a park on our way to "The Pokeaway" on a Saturday morning, and I would say "Other people go to parks on Saturday". We would see a garage sale sign and I would comment "Other people go to garage sales on Saturday." We would pass cyclists on the road and I would sigh "Other people go for bike rides on a Saturday." This weekend was an "other people" weekend. We went to a soccer game. My husband came too, rather than shooting out to "The Pokeaway". It was sunny. My son scored a goal. That meant we got to go out for lunch. We didn't go through the drive through. We went into the restaurant like "other people". Then he had a party to go to, so we went back to the farm. He got ready for the party, and I had a nap like ...

Although I haven't had my 3,7-dihydro-1,3,7-trimethyl-1H-purine-2,6-dione today, the sodium hypochlorite, and the sodium carbonate are hard at work getting me ready for what I need to accomplish. How can you tell I sat with my #2 son last night, while he worked out all sorts of fomulae for chemical compounds in preparation for his test today. It took me back a few years to my foray into the world of chemistry. I remember very little about that class except that my teacher Mr Chong was very passionate about all things molecular. And he had a very long fingernail on his baby finger. which I found very distracting. I took Gr. 12 Chemistry and worked very hard at it; I think I ended up with either a C+ or a B- (aren't they the same thing?). In the end, I decided I wouldn't be a chemical engineer, and my chemistry days ended in the second row of Mr Chong's chemistry lab. Last night, however, I had fun watching my son work through multivalent, binary and polyatomic compounds,...

Are you tired of me talking about moving yet? Well, tomorrow is the 'final' move. I use the 'final' lightly because it looks like the transitions are not quite finished. This is because the plumber has been very casual about plumbing, and there are actually very few pipes completed. Last I heard, he was on a motorcycle trip somewhere. Good for him. Not so good for me - who was counting on having a toilet to flush by the time I moved. So we are facing another round of transition. I love being a nomad. It's so fun. All that being said, I just wanted to announce that I really don't know how often I will be able to post on this forum for a while. You may check in and find that I've managed to get one in, and then again, maybe not. We are switching telephone/internet companies and there are complications with that as well. We thought we'd have service by today, but something went wrong, and they won't be back until Wednesday. Not having technology at my f...