Diet Advice

"Easy on those cookies, okay? Remember, they're just food,
they're not love."

--Roger, on Friends, Episode: The One With The Boobies, written by Alexa Junge

From A Facebook Status

I found out today, from my brother's Facebook status, that he is in New Brunswick now. Yup, my brother moved 5 provinces east a few days ago and I just learned this now, from Facebook. I asked him on Facebook 3 times over the last week to call me, I have heard nothing. I have asked my parents to mention to him that I would like him to call, nothing. I have tried to call him but no one picks up (he has neither call display or voice mail.) Now, I just found out, from his Facebook status of course, that he is going to be home for five days. I can only assume for Easter, but who knows for sure because he won't call me!

New Moon

I saw New Moon over the weekend. (The second movie in the Twlight vampire series.) It was enjoyable, however the best part came from this valleygirl rant, a nice break from all the brooding emo pinning. After going to the movies with Bella, her high school friend Jessica says; "I don't know, why you wanna sit through all those zombies eating people... and no hot guys kissing anybody. It's gross. Like, why are there so many zombie movies anyway? Is it supposed to, like, draw a parallel with leprosy? My cousin had leprosy, it's not funny you know? And like, is it supposed to be a metaphor for consumerism? Because don't be so pleased with your own, like... self-reverential cleverness, you know? Like, some girls like to shop. Not all girls, apparently. I was surprised you called at all, you know? Like, your depression thing... I'm totally... totally worried. After a while, it's like, she's still bumming? And I'm going through stuff too, you know?" --- New Moon, Written by Melissa Rosenberg (screenplay) & Stephenie Meyer (novel)

Uh Oh

Just a few days ago I was posting about my cool full size colour ads. A few people commented on the post listing off what was showing up when they checked. Now, I like to take a glance myself to see what Google Ads is picking up on from my writing. The very first one today: "STOP DRINKING ALCOHOL -- GET HELP NOW." That is never good.

Awesome Saturday Night

-Kristen and Taylor
-Pretty black dress with leggings
-New hair cut and hot blow out
-Candlelight, Earth Hour
-Drinking Jenga, Lindsay reading
-Kings, gin, and harsh tequila shots
-Cab with a little horse on the meter
-Fast line at Heart & Crown
-DANCING!!!!!
-Great food at Zaks Diner

All Three

I just checked Always Standing and all three on my side panel ads were cool, colour, full size, picture ones. It makes me feel very accomplished, since the list of little written ones don't seem as professional.
This is what they were for:
-Royal Purple, Automotive Spray Lube
-The Visitors, An ABC TV Show
-Rice Shred, Soy Free Cheese Alternative
Oh, Google Ads, you know my readership so well! I think the last time I checked I was around $7 in profits from my blog advertising, they don't send me a cheque until I reach $100. I think I worked out that at the current pace I would be getting paid in 2013, though I might add more ads at some point.

Oh, So True

Though I don't drink beer, replace that with hard alcohol of some type and this is my precisely my position on the issue! Thanks Erin for sending it me, you know me well.

Woo Girls

A Woo Girl is a type of young woman, who like the cuckoo bird or the Whip-Poor-Will, gets her name from the signature sound she makes. A woo can be elicited from a certain song coming on the jukebox ("Sweet Home Alabama" plays); to half-priced shots; from a ride on a mechanical bull; to, well, pretty much anything.
--
Barney: The world absolutely needs Woo Girls. If there were no Woo Girls, there would be no Girls Gone Wild, no bachelorette parties, no Las Vegas poolside bars. All the things that you hold dearest, Lily, would be gone.
Lily: Those are none the things...
Barney: The souvenir shot glass industry would collapse. So would the body glitter industry... and the stretch Hummer rental industry. Tiny cowboy hats would be worn only be worn by tiny cowboys. And when "Brown Eyed Girl" would come up on the jukebox, all you would hear would be silence... and "Brown Eyed Girl"... But who would woo? Lily? Who would woo? Would you? Would you... woo?
--
From How I Met Your Mother, Episode: Woooo!
Written by Carter Bays & Craig Thomas

Tonal

I'm trying to learn Mandarin, well a little bit of it, enough to get by as a tourist. Everyone keeps saying that it will be so much harder than other languages because it is "tonal." In that different tones change the meaning. It is hard, I find all languages hard. But I'm really not buying this tonal thing. I think a lot of languages are like that, including English. For example, "So, what are you wearing?" can be said in a number of different tones to mean completely different things.
-
"Soo -- What - are you - wearing?"
Said a girlfriend when interested in outfit advice.
"Sooooo, What are you weeeearing?"
Said by a boyfriend trying to be sexy.
"So, -WHAT- arrre - you wearing?"
Said by a mean person trying to insult you.
-
See, it is all in the tone!

The Weekend Of Aging

Teri came to visit this weekend. She brought her friend Christine. (To avoid confusion, and because of our personal preferences, Christine is Christine and I am Chris. However, people still mix us up.) They stayed with me and we visited with Kate, Teri and Christine's friend from Waterloo who now lives up here in Ottawa. It was a weekend where I really started to feel a little old:
---Friday Night has really started to turn into a Girls Night At Die Höhle, including cooking dinner together instead of just ordering pizza
---Salad was served and I had two helpings of it
---There might have been a conversation about barbeques and wanting one
---Two letters - E.D.
---Christine slept in our guestroom, Die Höhle has a guestroom, all class
---Woke up in the morning and did dishes right away
---Kate, Christine, Teri and I went to a Sugar Bush on a Saturday morning
---Had to stop at Tim Horton's for coffee and Roll-Up-The-Rim
---We wanted to do an Easter Egg hunt at the Sugar Bush but were rejected because we weren't children, or with children
---Went to a movie that featured September 11th, which was 10 years ago
---Kate had crackers & cheese, along with spinach dip & pumpernickel for us to snack on at her apartment
---She lives in an amazing apartment downtown, complete with underground parking, art on the walls, and a flat screen TV
---We were called cougars in line at the bar
---Went to a party with a bunch of 30 year olds and fit right in
---Kate had her birthday, turned 25
--Got way too drunk and ended up ill, exhausted, and hungover for an entire day, I used to NEVER get hungover
What is happening to me? I'm getting so old!!

Living Literary

Kristen has started a blog. I believe it was part of a course at school, she is doing a post-grad thing in Book and Magazine Publishing at Centennial Collage in Toronto. She reviews books, talks about life in a book store, and discusses the exciting industry of publishing. Living Literary, Kristen's blog, is now listed in My Links to the right. A Journalism graduate, Kristen's writing has always been incredible, her blog is definitely worth a read. Maybe you will get inspired to read some of the books she mentions!! (Photo: Homework - Kristen, By Christine Sweeton)

And It's A Go

I am booked for Russia!!! Last night I booked and confirmed my Gap Adventures train trip. I have bought my plane ticket with Air China from Vancouver to Beijing and paid for half of my 21 day train tour with Gap. I am now looking into travel bags/backpacks, figuring out what I'm doing ahead of time in terms of visiting Edmonton and Vancouver, figuring out timing for coming home, and planning my first week in China with Yen. It is all happening!!!

Volvo Driving Soccer Mom

"Volvo Driving Soccer Mom"

by Everclear

-

Na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na

You know I used to be a bad girl

I got busy in the bathroom at my high school prom

Yeah I used to be a dancer at the local strip club

But now I know my right wing from my wrong

-

Yeah, yeah I really used to be a bad girl

I had a threesome with my sister and her boyfriend Tom

I know I used to be a real wild child

But now I am a Volvo-driving soccer mom

-

Na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na

I really used to be a bad girl

I got busted for possession of my wizard-shaped bong

I used to love to do the things they tell me not to do

But now I'm different--now I sing a new song

-

I really used to be a bad girl

I got gang-banged in the bathroom at my high school prom

Yes, I used to be a real wild child

But now I am a Volvo-driving soccer mom

-

Na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na

Where do all the porn stars go

When the lights go down?

I wonder where all the porn stars go

'Cause when you need one, they are never around

-

I think they moved out to the suburbs

And now they're blonde, bland, middle-class Republican wives

They all have blonde, bland, middle-class Republican children

Blonde, bland, middle-class Republican lives

-

Where do all the porn stars go

When the lights go down?

I think I know where all the porn stars go

They all become Volvo-driving soccer moms

-

Na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na

A Homepage Switch

Ever since I got My New Pet (my Acer laptop) I have had what I think of as "Steph Homepages" which means when I open up my web browser there are multiple tabs which open as my homepage. (Steph has had this on her computers for as long as I came remember, I always thought it was so cool and advanced. Turns out it is really easy to do.) So for the last year and a half, they have been, in order, Carleton, Yahoo Mail, Facebook, Always Standing. I figured it was time, since I don't really need to use the Carleton website very much anymore, to get rid of it as one of them. I made the switch tonight. Now they are, in order, Always Standing, Yahoo Mail, Facebook. It was time to move on.

Replaced With A Fish

JennB is gone. She started her new job today so isn't here. I have replaced her with a fish. (This is not really true, as I have been planning on getting a fish for my desk for a while now.) I had a "Cubical Fish" at NRCan, whose name at the moment I can't recall but everyone loved him. I don't think I'm actually allowed to have one here, and we have a bet going on as to how long before someone notices and tells me to get rid of him. He is a bright purple-blue Crowntail Beta, aka. Siamese Fighting Fish. The coolest part is the little aquarium I have from him which is very trendy. I have named him Jenn, even though he is a boy.

So Much Good Looking

I don't know which of the smoking hot guys in this clip to mention. Just watch it, they keep popping up all the way through! So well done, Kimmel really seems to be able to pull together skits with piles of stars. The best part happens at the end with the throwback to previous skits and the on going feud between Kimmel and Matt Damon. (If don't understand the reference see it first because it is also awesome, and it is always good to see things it order.)

So Now It Is Friday

It is a bit of a sad day. Today is JennB's last day working with me. She is moving to another job in a different department starting on Monday. Luckily JennB is more then just an office friend or "work spouse" so we will still see each other often. We work out together at Curves, watch ANTM, travel together, hang out, and in May she is moving in with Jer and I for a couple of months. Still, work will be harder without her around. She is good fun. (And super cute in her Halloween costume!) I'm really sad that she is leaving. I wish her well at her new job though, change is good.
(Photo by Pat Walton)

So It Is Not Friday

Turns out today is Thursday. I didn't know this until lunch time. (See my previous post about Red Fridays.) Not only am I wearing red today to show my support for the troops, as I do most Fridays, but I am also wearing jeans, since in all office jobs Friday is more casual. Well, actually it isn't Friday, oops!! Turns out it is Thursday....

So It Is Friday

The Canadian military has made many sacrifices in the name of peace, not only for Canada but for many other countries around the world. Wearing Red on Fridays is a symbolic gesture to honour those who fought or fight in the Canadian Forces. The goal is to show non-partisan support for our military troops, not to support any particular policy, political position, agenda or the nature of military missions. United we stand for peace and freedom no matter of opinion, creed, religion, gender, sexual orientation, colour, or race. Wear RED on Fridays.

Underwear Goes Inside The Pants

"We're in one of the richest countries in the world, but the minimum wage is lower than it was thirty five years ago. There are homeless people everywhere. This homeless guy asked me for money the other day. I was about to give it to him and then I thought he was going to use it on drugs or alcohol. And then I thought, that's what I'm going to use it on. Why am I judging this poor bastard. People love to judge homeless guys. Like if you give them money they're just going to waste it. Well, he lives in a box, what do you want him to do? Save it up and buy a wall unit?Take a little run to the store for a throw rug and a CD rack? He's homeless. I walked behind this guy the other day. A homeless guy asked him for money. He looks right at the homeless guy and says why don't you go get a job you bum. People always say that to homeless guys like it is so easy. This homeless guy was wearing his underwear outside his pants. Outside his pants. I'm guessing his resume isn't all up to date. I'm predicting some problems during the interview process. I'm pretty sure even McDonalds has a "underwear goes inside the pants" policy. Not that they enforce it really strictly, but technically I'm sure it is on the books."
-- Lazy B, from Underwear Goes Inside The Pants

It's Time I Told You

I have a name tag. It is my first ever mounted, printed, official, work name tag. I have had ones I pinned on my shirt before. (Taco Bell's was even a red plastic hot pepper shaped name tag.) I have had ones that were printed on computer paper and taped or pinned outside my cubical. (Every other time I worked for the government this was the case.) However, just before I came back from Christmas to start my full-time contract here there was a big reorganization and cubical move that happened, so as to fit more people into the same amount of space. In that process they updated the name tags and gave me one. (Even though I think usually that isn't policy for contract workers and/or students.) It was scary when I first saw it, but I have come to terms with it now. I have also come to terms with the fact that I think, after my Masters, I will end up in the Public Service. It was a sad realisation as I fought it so long. I wanted to be free, running around the private sector, no contact to politics, in a land were inefficiency is quickly resolved and the incorrect or incompetent quickly fired, inspired by passion, creativity, and competition. But I have learned that no one will give me the life that the Federal Government can. The money, the time off, even the work at times, is pretty amazing. So, after my Masters I will return to the sweet comforting embrace of the Public Service.

Someone Wants Me

I just got an e-mail from Ryerson about my application to their Literatures of Modernity program and I got in!! Here is what it said:

I am writing to inform you that the graduate admissions committee was impressed by your application and that we hope you will join our program in September. A formal letter of offer has been mailed to you, but I just wanted to contact you directly with the good news. Your letter will contain the details of a funding offer, which I would like here to summarize briefly. We are pleased to offer you a minimum package of $8,000 in funding, in the form of one graduate teaching/marking assistantship (approx $5000) and one research assistantship (approx $3000). Again, this is a guaranteed minimum; if more funds become available to us, we may be able to increase the amount of your offer.

I'm happy with the funding but that isn't a lot to live on for a year in Toronto, especially if it is needed to cover tuition as well. (I will have to look at the official letter to see what the tuition is.) However, there is still a chance that I will get the OGC (Ontario Graduate Scholarship) I applied for. I need to wait to see if I get into Uof T before I accept this one. I don't know which one I want to do more.

Sick

Cold, cold go away,
Come again another day.
I went to bed, stuffed up in the head,
And I couldn't get up in the morning!

Weekends

I am filling up my weekends fast!!
March 6&7 -- Montreal, Get China tickets with Yen, Visit with Anna & Wes
March 13&14 -- Yen's visit, Erin's party, Maybe snowboarding
March 20&21 -- Maybe visit from Teri.
March 27&28 -- Hair cut, Kristen & Taylor visiting
April 3&4 -- Easter, Maybe going home
April 10&11 -- Newfoundland!!!!

The Long And Winding Road

The Drive To The Coast

Video and Narration by Christine Sweeton

The drive from Cómpeta, down the mountains, to the coast was pretty intense. We did it usually there and back once a day. I decided on the last day to document it in video (I had plenty of space left on the memory card in my camera.) Also, I was having a hard time capturing it in a photo. Enjoy! (Be warned, the narration is super lame, and doesn't really sound very much like me.)

Great Quote

"I don't trust banks. I believe that when the robots rise up, ATM's will lead the charge."
-Sheldon, The Big Bang Theory, The Excelsior Acquisition episode written by Chuck Lore & Bill Prady

Don't Show Me A Montage

I had an amazing time, but my trip to Spain did have some negatives; bad weather, missed flight connections, etc. Another big issue with leaving for the two weeks that I did was that I pretty much missed all of the Olympics. We thought there would be some coverage in Spain especially because the apartment had cable with BBC World News and CNBC. However, not so much, the coverage we got was beyond minimal. I would say maybe 30 seconds a day. Getting into Toronto this weekend I ended up watching almost 8 hours of Olympics on Sunday. At Teri's house, I started watching CTV coverage from the time I woke up until just after the final goal of the Men's Gold Medal Hockey Team. (Go Canada Go!!) In the morning, within the first half an hour they showed one of the emotional montages to music of great moments and I definitely cried. I love the Olympics, I'm really sad to have missed it.

Buenas Tardes - Good Afternoon

There hasn’t really been a typical day for my trip, since I have done so many different things that the days are fairly different. This is just a description of what I did Tuesday February 23rd, to give you an idea how my vacation is going.

We were at Alhambra in perfect timing to get an afternoon ticket which goes from 2pm to 6pm. (It cost 12 Euros which is just under $20.) To get into the main palace every ticket is given a specific entry time. Ours was 2:30pm. While we waited we went to a nice open area near the fortress section of the complex and had lunch. (The usual European style of lunch; bread, cheese, fruit, etc.) Then we walked around the fortified area or alcazaba, which is the oldest section of the complex made of red clay stones and bricks, build in the 1200's. The palace, The Comares Palace, is the most important part, built in the 1300's by Yusuf I and later his son, Mohamed V. It is jaw droppingly beautiful. I cannot even describe the awe inspiring decorations of these rooms, pictures don't do it justice. It is absolutely incredible. After our tour through there we went to the second palace, built by Emperor Carlos V in the 1500's. The Muslim rulers lost Granada and Alhambra in 1492, after which this second palace was built. I thought it too was really great, but all the guidebooks dismissed it. We visited a few other smaller sites around the complex, a Catholic church built beside Moorish baths etc. Then we headed over to the Generalife, which is the garden section of the complex. They are also very impressive. Throughout the entire afternoon I was very interested in the water, which flowed through pools, fountains, tunnels, pipes, and troughs. It was very genius engineering for the time. We got kicked out, since we stayed right until closing.

The Comares Palace - Alhambra, Granda, Spain

Photo from Office Alhambra Website