So, another excitng week begins.
And the stress continues to build.
Report Cards are next week and I am struggling to get my marking done.
I am so distracted, and need to refocus. (I guess there are certain things that are preoccuping my time.)

Had a very relaxing weekend. Went to the gym on Saturday morning and then spent some time with Mum. Then I went home as I was not feeling well. Tried to sleep it off. Was surprised with a nice phone call that night. Still cannot sleep though. I think I have spring fever.

Sunday brought the church thing, and more time with Mum. We had sushi for lunch and then did some light shopping.
Sarah rang to tell me that she had purchased me an original piece of art that she had seen. Perfect to complement my red dining room. Much more affordable that my choice of a flamenco dancer for 800 pounds.

I also bought some other prints, which I swear are portraits of me. A lady surrounded by her shopping and sipping on a glass of red wine. I swear it is me. Now... to choose the perfect place to hang it.

I still want to have a tasteful nude done. But that should remain confidential.

The weather has taken another turn for the cold. I was shocked to see that there was a dusting of snow on the ground for the last two days. I am so over winter. I actually had to put socks on this morning. It was -8 this morning.

Am looking forward to a busy week and am heading back to work with the airline again this weekend. I need a little push on my income.

K

OK Where did this week go?
I was at a very interesting seminar yesterday, and have had some great insight into what people think of me.
I have spent the morning looking for personality tests to find out what type of person I am.

I was told yesterday that I was a TYPE A, which blew my mind. I am sure that I am a type B.

I will keep you posted on my research.

Popped in for a few drinks with the staff last night and then hit the gym.

Can I have a more exciting life.

Meetings all this afternoon, which stress me out. I am so not a politicla person so when we start to talk nonsense, It drives me up the wall.

Again, I am sure that I will have much more to say.

The weekend, here again already.

YEAHHHHH!!!

So, here it is Tuesday already.
I could just not drag myself out of bed this morning. I was so cozy, and hate such a great sleep last night. I have been fighting a bout of insomnia, and hope that it may have broken last night.

I had an excellent visit last night, and a superior heart to heart. I think it put my heart and mind in a great state, and thus I slept well. I have been making an extra effort to share my feelings. It is hard to do when you have been burned so many times. But it is my new life resolution. And I think I am moving towards this quite nicely.

Have planned to go and visit Dad this afternoon. I will see how the weather holds up.

Had the best lunch today. More sushi. And ran into a friend from the past. She has jsut returned from four months in Africa and was telling me all about her adventures. I so long to travel and teach. I am stongly considering taking a year to travel.

Thought of the day.
Does the fact that you know something is going to hurt, make it hurt more or less when the time comes?
Let's imagine a band-aid. I mean we all know the purpose that it serves, but we also all know that when the time comes for you to remove it, it hurts. But I wonder...
do we psych ourselves out at the thought of the pain that will come, that when we rip it off that it hurts more ot less?

I am not sure that I have a good answer for this question. But wouldn't mind some insight.

K
(Feeling the warmth of a stray sun beam)

Why is it than on Monday's I can never get my act together. I swear I spent the whole morning running around. I can't even tell you what I did but from the moment that I walked in the door to the time that I started to teach my class today, I have been a woman on a mission. I guess the fact that my office is on the third floor, and I had many things to do in the office on the third floor, in addition to the fact that I had to run back and forth. AAAHHAHHAHHHH!!!!

Anyway, the big haircut yesterday did not happen. By the time we raced all the way there, they were running over an hour late and I could not believe it. I refused to wait, as I thought that they should have at least made an attempt to call me to alert me. I have been a faothful customer for four years. NO LONGER. I drop some good cash in there as well. I guess I will have to drop it somewhere else.

Have had a great conversation with the monsters this morning. One of the girls brough in an article that discussed research that suggested that Men listened with only half their brain. DO NOT GET EXICTED. That is not what I was teaching them. We were examining Media Literacy strategies, as this is the most crucial thing that we need to be doing at this time.

(I swear to you that one of the hosts on CNN yesterday commented on how interesting it was to see propaganda developping on the part of the Iraq government. I mean of all people to be commenting on propaganda. How ironinc is that.)

Anyway, back to the conversation with the kids. They really had great comments, and we concluded that the real purpose of the research was to examine the rebuilding of language aquisition of men vs women after a stroke. The title was misleading. It was a great activity and hopefully they will start to look at what the media presents to them and question the validity of the arguement.

Enjoying the sun today (+14 I believe), and have a worn a skirt for the first time in a long time. Man my legs are white. I can't wait for soccer season to start. I need my daily tanning session.

k

Have had the most pleasant weekend, and it is not yet over.
I went back to the gym yesterday, and realized ho wmuch I have missed being there. I was glad to have a break as I have been religious since the middle of Septmeber. It was a great recovery session for me. But again, glad to be back.
I dropped in to visit Mum as well. I haven't seen her much this week, We made plans to spend this afternoon to get our hair cut. We are going to Fiorio. It is one of few places that I trust to cut my hair. Mom has opted to come with me.

I spent the afternoon with Lisa yesterday and it was full of excitement. I don't see her very often so it is great to have some time to catch up with her. Ashley is a litlle angel. Once she warms up to you she is soooo cute. Lisa and I had lunch and did some power shopping. It was a really nice girlie afternoon.

I also stayed for dinner, as Dave's parents were bringing sushi over. I love sushi. And I am eagerly trying to learn how to use chopsticks. I am not horrible, but I need practice. I wonder why I can pick up a grain of rice with less effort than a piece of chicken. Dave and his family were great and showed me the most efficient way to operate the chopsticks. I must admit that I have to keep my other hand under the table as I have the urge at times to grab with that hand. And, secret about to be revealed., I also do the little temper tantrum dance under the table when I am unsuccessful. I will master them. I swear.

Got a lovely unexpected phone call last night. Pleasant conversation as usual. :) Made my drive home very enjoyable.

K

I have a confession to make.
I have planned to win the lottery tonight. It is $19 million.
And then you might never hear from me again.
Actually, on second thought.
I might just turn into a professional blogger and bombard people wiht my deep thoughts. (Do you remember that segement from Saturday Night Live?)
Deep Thoughts.... Am trying to remember my favorite motivational quote. I actually think that I had a book at one time. Strange tangent....

So I asked the kids what they suggested I do. Remember they are 14. (I am so proud of them)
1. Go to visit my sister (because I love her so much)
2. Go shopping (because we know that you love to shop)
3. Travel More (Although you have already been everywhere) AS IF
4. Give money to the school and the Church
5. Buy myself a car and a house
6. Give money to all my family and friends who are having financial problems
7. DO NOT QUIT YOUR JOB (Because you are a great teacher, and I am not saying that because I want you to share your winnings with me)
8. To give to charity
9. You will not win, because I will win. (Although my firend, you are too young to play.)
10. Have surgery to fix my voice. (How cute!!)

I wonder, and am actually sure that I have a fantastic ability to go off on a zillion tangents.
I think that there are very few people that can keep up with my leaping from one topic to another. I laugh to think of how many times I have to stop and rewind (insert rewind sound here) to catch people up.

Thinking of Evy at this moment. When the two of us get started, no one can keep up.

Belated congrats to her for being admitted to Vet School. You deserve it girl!!!!

Am looking forward to my visit with Lisa and Ashley this weekend. I see them so rarely.
Tangent.. SJ and I were just discussing how I see her, who lives in London more often than I see people who live down the road.

Have to fly. And not literally.
K

So... for some strange reason, I was still awake at 12:30 last night.
My big mission yesterday was to clean up around the house.
I went to Canadian Tire and bought some new supplies, and a new mop.
I also decided that I would do some baking. Anything in an attempt to avoid the bombardment (and yes that is an ironic choice of words). I was crazving pizza and decided that I would make my own, as it would occupy me for longer.
I knew, that I was too scatter brained to leave it in the oven. I knew that I would forget. I thought about setting a timer. But I didn't. I should have known better.

Well one thing lead to another and I was puttering around the house. And when my roomie made her weekly appearance, and out of the kindness of her heart she attempted to do the car shuffle. In the shuffle my car died. So here we are two women in the middle of the street trying to jump a car, with the cables :) I was so proud of us. For a moment I was wishing that I had those idiot proof cables. But I didn't. Seems to be the thought of the day. Anyway, I figured that the wires must just have been wet as it has been raining. But I called for an expert opinion. Which confirmed my thoughts.

Anyway, so here I am lying in bed and then I remember..... THE PIZZA. Did I turn it off? I don't remember. So I try to sniff and see if I can smell it burning. Can't smell it. Can't remember turing it off. So I leap out of bed and race to the kitchen.

Yup, the oven is still on, and my lovely pizza is now a large charcoal lump.

What is the moral of the story?
Don't bake when you are scooters.
The end.
K

Here it is Wednesday already.
It is funny to see how quickly you can get back into your routines.
Having a week away from here definatly cleared my head. Still working to get back on the marking train.

Have had an ecellent week with the kids. It is so nice to say that. Some weeks are really rough. This has however been realy great.

What do you think? Is your happiness or the happiness of people around you the most important?
We have been discussing this over the last few days.

That damn scale/ balance is occuring again. It seems to be the solution to all my moral and ethical decsions. The proper balance of everything sure would reduce any issues.

Was a little under the weather yesterday, had one of my angels tell me that he could see the dark circles under my eyes. But with a great night of sleep that St Patricks Day Mahem has gotten out of my system. Had a fab night. Followed by a not so fab hang over.

In the infamous words of a tshirt I once saw.
"How can I be so thirsty today, when I drank so much last night?"

Happy belated birthday to my little sister. Was thinking of you much this week as we have suddenly become separated again. Will see you again soon bella!!!!

So this should have been posted on Monday, but the server was being picky.
Here it is anyway.

Ok. So how bad have I been with this blog.
Very bad.

But I promise this week will be better.
Something about being on vacation made me not want to write at all.

Returned from London yesterday, and what a treat my return flight was.
We checked in at Paddington Station. What a great idea. No lines, no crowds… It was great. The flight was full so they bumped me into World Travaller Plus. Then when I went to board the plane, they bumped me into Business Class. What a treat. That is truly the way to travel. Champagne, wine, chocolates. It was great.
It made the eight hour flight a dream. Thanks BA for the special treatment. In addition from the time that I left the flight, went through customs, and picked up my bag only 25 minutes had passed. That in itself was a miracle.

And even better was to come home to a clean house. I must have been thinking before I left. I quickly put an end to that as I unpacked to show off all my new purchases.

Nice to be at home in my own bed, but sad to say good bye to my sister. Although I do see her more often than I do my cousins who live only hour(s) away by car. Strange how that is.

Promise to be more pensive this afternoon. Just trying to avoid the marking that I should be doing. (YUCK)

Greetings from London.
When Sarah started her blogspot, I was amazed at all of the content that she managed to find to write about.
I now know that it is all about London. It could also be because I have time to observe what is happening around me.

Anyway, here are some of the adventures that I encountered yesterday.

1. You won’t believe it. I can hardly believe it myself.
I have seen the future of fashion and am very afraid.
FLOURESCENT EIGHTIES STYLES ARE BACK.
Have taken pictures as proof because I know that it is hard to believe.
2. Bus Behavior. Strange to watch people play musical chairs on the bus. I understand the idea of wanting to ultimately end up sitting by yourself, but got the greatest satisfaction out of watching this women yesterday clutching her LV purse bouncing from seat to seat as we traveled through Hackney and Dolston.
3. Walking down Oxford Street amidst a shower of bubbles. (And in my try style, being the only one to crack a smile.) Like it wasn’t an interesting sight.
4. Bought a travel journal to track my adventures this summer. (Because this might be my last one, AS IF!!! I have been saying that for five years.) Very handy! But the most hilarious is the section dedicated to a budget. I can tell you already that section will never be used. At the bottom of the budget page there is a place to check off if you are over or under budget. Sarah says that I should just check OVER BUDGET on every page.
5. We briefly discussed heading to Sainsbury’s for Singles. (A grocery store just for singles, and single servings. I see a great business opportuniy.

Am going to head in to visit Sarah for lunch again today and will attack the other side of the Oxford today.

The best thing about a long visit (which I never, ever have) Is that there is no race to hit all the shops in a concentrated time.

And I have been very good. Minimal expenses to date.

K

330 pm london time
am know 6 pints in and still have not slept.
feeling good.

wanted to post quickly.
arrived in london with little excitement.
poor girls have slept les than I have.
seems the new neighbours have been on a bender since friday night.
the rave continues.

it is so wild to be on a patio haveing pints, as oppsed to being stuck indoors.
will come home with a tan I am sure.

thanks to all who helped me celebrate my special day.

And a super thanks to those who made it super special,

Will be much better at the updates this week.

Much to comment on.

In the interest of being multilingual, here is what I have been thinking about today.
Can you guess what it is?

Dutch: boezemvriend (m) , de boezemvriendin (f) (de)
French: âme (f) sœur
German: Gesinnungsgenosse (m)
Italian: anima gemella
Spanish: alma gemela

I’ll give you another clue:
1. who shares the same feelings, thoughts, ideas, outlook, tastes, etc as someone else.
2. One of two persons compatible with each other in disposition, point of view, or
sensitivity.


I must say that these definitions just don’t cut it for me. They lack something fundamental that I can’t even put my finger on.
It amuses me that there are no numerical limitations on the number of soul mates that you can have. I guess I have always thought that you will ever have one in your life.
There must be a limit of how many people share your vision, or point of view. I would like to think that many people share some of my thoughts, and that somewhere (very close by) is a person who can fully understand me.
Compatible: also an interesting content of the definition. I truly don’t think that it fits. Just because you tolerate and are able to get along, does not make you a soul mate. I think that it is much deeper than that.

I wonder if Chad realizes that he labelled himself as a women on the guest map.
Should I tell him?

Why you should not drink on airplanes.
So... get this one.
I am on the plane on Saturday night. It has been a long night. Lots of turbulence. Lots of people starting the party on the plane. Not to mention (this will sound snobby) that I have not worked in the cabin in.... a very long time. I have been living the sheltered life of Club (First Class).

I go to the front of the plane and there is this women talking to one of the Flight Attendants.
She has had a few glasses (too many of wine)

She looks at me and says. "I remember you from last week." And then reaches for my stomach and pats it. "How is the baby?"

Instant terror and shock.

"I'm not pregnant." I reply.

"Yes you are!" she says

"No... You must have me confused with someone else."

"No, I am sure that it is you. If it isn't it is someone who looks just like you. She even has BIG FLUFFY hair. Just like yours."

I looked at her and said "I am leaving. I can't take any more of this."

Moral of the story.

Don't drink (too much) on the airplane. Who knows how you embarass yourself or others.

She did tell the other girls that she was terribly upset. Then I felt like I should tell her that I wasn't upset.

BUT......

In the interest of being true to myslefd and not doing things to please other people, I stood my ground. (That was a big ordeal for me.)
K