Hace calor!

Way too hot! Way WAY too hot! (I don't do heat well.) It was NOT a nice weekend! I went out Saturday morning and bought myself a new 19 inch oscillating fan, put it together (Yes, M., I swore a time or two in the process), then pretty much spent the rest of the weekend parked in front of it. I can't believe how much heat bothers me, considering I was raised up in the Okanagan where it gets REALLY hot. Even more puzzling, this is still only MAY! Was it too hot for you too wherever you are?

I've been struggling with an on-line presentation for my Computer Apps course this afternoon. For some reason, my last two paragraphs think they are entirely active web links instead of normal text (I'm talking HTML crap here), and I'm too frustrated to see what I'm doing wrong. That's it! I NEED CHOCOLATE NOW! Actually, I need to call it quits for the day. Maybe next post I'll do something besides complain . . . . .

Exploring PG

This morning I walked a little farther than usual and discovered a Farmer's Market! There were empty ostrich egg shells and feathers (and I think ostrich sausage, but yuk no thanks), various stalls selling bannock, jams, home-made breads, lots of plants, fresh rhubarb and fiddleheads, and lots of beaded stuff and assorted crafts. All in all, a nice outing, altho I spent not one penny there. I had to catch the bus up the hill to the university (cuz there's no bus service Sundays or holidays here) to do some work on next weeks assignments; otherwise I would have explored the area around the Farmer's Market a little more. Next time!

So what do y'all think about Canadian politics this week??? Holy schmoley! Better than a soap opera or what? I (who am usually quite happily apolitical) am certainly with those who think our assorted governments should quit acting like children and get on with the job of governing our country!

I have to share a slightly spooky thing that happened to me this past week. One particular day, I found it necessary to share a table at meal time (I usually try to find a solitary corner somewhere). An older First Nations woman with a little girl were already seated there, and she smiled and indicated an empty seat across from them. I thanked her, and then made a special point to thank the little girl. She looked about three-ish, and cute as a button. I'm positive I've never seen either woman or little girl before.

Well, we ate our lunches and engaged in pleasant chit chat about nothing in particular. The little girl watched me very seriously, and when she finished eating, climbed down from her chair, came around the table, and put her arms around me. The gesture was very heartwarming! Little person hugs mean a lot to me, and often bring tears to my eyes -- I didn't hug my own kids enough when they were growing up, and now that I have grandchildren, I don't see them often enough to enjoy all the hugs I'd like to share.

But that's not the end of this story. Mid-hug, this little girl looked up at me and said something I couldn't understand. From her expression and tone, I gathered her words were very serious, and not wanting to disappoint (or look like an idiot to the youngster), I looked to the older lady for translation. Grandma informed me the little one had explained in their language: "I remember when you and me played together, when we were both small, and you weren't old then".

I was stunned! Did I know this little person in another life (I am a firm believer in many journeys for every soul)? If so, why did she recognize me, but I didn't recognize her? Where and when did we know each other? I've been puzzling over this all week. Ah, life does hold some interesting mysteries, doesn't it???

Food for thought

A bus-stop acquaintance handed me this on the way up the hill this morning:

Pick 5 of the following and then complete the sentences. Then pass this little meme on to 3 more of your blog friends! But no tag backs! And be careful…you could be next!

If I could be a scientist…
If I could be a farmer…
If I could be a musician…
If I could be a doctor…
If I could be a painter…
If I could be a gardener…
If I could be a missionary…
If I could be a chef…
If I could be an architect…
If I could be a linguist…
If I could be a psychologist…
If I could be a librarian…
If I could be an athlete…
If I could be a lawyer…
If I could be an inn-keeper…
If I could be a professor…
If I could be a writer…
If I could be a llama-rider…
If I could be a bonnie pirate…
If I could be an astronaut…
If I could be a world famous blogger…
If I could be a justice on any one court in the world…
If I could be married to any current famous political figure…

so I picked ...

If I could be a painter… I'd paint a huge big portrait of autumn, and make liberal use of all the fabulous rusts and reds and golds and browns and greens of autumn. My painting would absolutely EXPLODE with colour, and I would hang it in my bedroom where it would be the first thing I see every morning. That way, I could open my eyes, and remember the delicious feeling of crisp autumn air and promise of newness that I associate with the season.

If I could be a linguist… I would study and learn languages and dialects from all over the world, and devote the rest of my life to developing a single universal language that would reduce cross-cultural hate, mistrust, and fear.

If I could be a librarian… I would want to be a librarian in a very special library that catered to craft-a-holics like myself. My library would be filled with knitting and crocheting patterns (etc) from around the world, and would sponsor knit-alongs and supports groups for people like me.

If I could be a gardener… I would have a special section in my garden for dye plants, because I have always wanted to learn about and try my hand at natural textile dyeing. I've used pre-prepared chemical dyes on wools and silks, but the colours are not as nice as the range of beautiful colours obtained from plants.

If I could be a bonnie pirate… oh what the heck! It would just plain be fun to have me own fast little ship and to terrorize the powers that be on the high seas! I'd be a bit of a Robin Hood, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, and I'd wear one gold earring and a black leather eye patch!

So which 5 sentences would YOU pick? And what would YOUR answers be?

On carnations and mafioso fish ...

Since it was Mother's Day this past weekend, and I qualify, I took myself out for yummy sushi and a movie (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy). It's really nice to be able to do that and not worry about missing the last bus up the hill to campus!

Someone tried to give me a carnation for Mother's Day after Mass on Sunday. Why do they do that? Maybe some people don't LIKE to celebrate the day? Maybe some people don't LIKE carnations? The gesture made me think about growing up in my hometown. Mother's Day weekend was always "Horseshow Weekend", and my dad and I both prefered spending the day at the horseshow rather than doing something with/for the mother person in our household. Needless to say, we weren't popular! After I had kids of my own, I had occasion to go back to my childhood church one Mother's Day (I cannot imagine why!), and was given a carnation. Grams got a carnation too, as did every mother/grandmother/female that morning. Grams GLARED at me all thru the service, and I just knew she was going to "discuss" horseshow weekends after (which she did, in great detail). Fascinating what little things like carnations can bring up, eh?

I have inherited a new hexagon-shaped tank for my fish. My "boys" ("Tony Soprano", "Tackle", and "Vido") are thrilled to have 2X more room to swim in, and way more active. (Vido particularly likes the fake lava dome.) However, the tank came with a "catch" ... two nasty little black mollies! They're so small, I figured my "boys" would just gulp them down for lunch and that would be that. However, the mollies are really feisty, and have been attacking the poor goldfish! (Do you know anything about mollies? Is that normal?) In keeping with their nasty behaviour and the general mafiaso-in-the-fish-tank theme, I've renamed the mollies "Rocco" and "Vinny". Let's hope Rocco and Vinny don't put a hit out on big fat Tony while I'm on campus!

Hey, I'm looking for a small, fairly easy quilting project that I can carry with me, and maybe stitch at while riding the bus or between classes. Any ideas anyone???

The latest challenge

A new semester (inter-semester?) and new challenges ... Computer Applications and Spanish!

Computer Apps is mostly done on-line (WebCT), and there seem to be a gazillion LABS and a huge and complicated list of submission dates. What little computer knowledge I have is pretty much self-taught basics, so I'm both looking forward to learning more and slightly terrified.

Spanish (... hola, me llamo LD ...) is going to be FUN FUN FUN! I love languages! I've done a couple of semesters of Spanish by correspondence in the past. However, this is the first time actually engaging in conversation. How exciting! Our instructor is from the Honduras, and very typically loud and expressive. I was surprised to see half of the students in this class are ESL speakers from Hong Kong or Taiwan, and can't help but wonder what kind of challenges they are facing.

It rained here last night. Sure was nice to wake up to the sound of rain.

By the way, M. ... thanks heaps for the lovely big picture of that chocolate cake! You are definately an EVIL person! May your beer mug be perpetually dry this summer!