Roaming the one way streets

semi-altered

So to appease the hairstylist lady last week I let her flat iron my hair.

Oh.

My.

God.

I didn't realize it would be such a life changing event.


The ever so psychotic hair has been altered.

As much as I would like to say I didn't like it.... I really did. Mind you... the hair on the first day was totally completely flat and straight. I looked weirder than I do now, with more or less semi flat hair.

Watch out world... a more or less crazy woman in disguise with flattish hair.

~~~

It's warm outside... but I am going bear hunting. HAVE TO.

So there he is...

As always... I am sitting with my camera, playing with my settings... BECAUSE I DO THAT OKAY.... and out he saunters. I love the way they just wonder around, going for a stroll... "doing their thing". He jumped out onto the road from the little spot on the right, crept along the roadway ever so silently and slipped himself back into the bushes, just into the shade, again to the right. It was cool just to watch. Not more than minute later... there was a skate boarder, making his way down the roadway. Like I always say.. we may not see them, but they are there.

More green to be seen

I said JUMP

Greens my thing

This could be her.

This could be the same girl from last year, minus the cubs... I like the way she talks to us.

here she is!

Another 30

Good evening followers....

Like you haven't heard from me enough today...

Well.... lucky me... I sold another picture. How incredible... now I am up to sixty cents!


Yes. gasp. I did.

OH... and the hair is returning to it's regular crazy state. AND... the most important I saw bears tonight. It's all lovely.

ha haha hq hahhaha h ha ha

So THAT GIRL (aka "the Pip") cleans up her room, and cleans the ants out. Good for her... with the exception that she moved them all to the laundry room. It's a good thing that the husbandman found the disaster in the making, and then cleaned out the laundry room "recycle file". Whew close call.

In other close calls:

Got the hair cut today. At an actual hair cutter place... and not great clips... because I like that place... this place actually does all kinds of things with hair. Strangely different for me. So the lady was DYING to use the straightening thingy... so I let her... nobody recognizes me in the homestead... and are all wondering when the psychotic mother makes her re-appearance! Tomorrow morning at 0630.

Now... off to the bears!

Antastic!

The girl... all 12 years of age of her has had a revelation...

It's probably a good thing that she keep her room clean, and free of sugary food bits.

We have been reminding her for forever and a day... but TODAY was the grandaddy of reminders....

She had ANTS crawling throughout her bedroom... you know.. just to make the day interesting.

So, she has spent all morning cleaning, and redistributing her prized possessions, and the bedroom has come out ahead of the game!

Yae her. Hopefully the QUEEN of CLEAN will finally become her middle name.

OK.. maybe not, but one can be hopeful.

~~~~

In bear news.....

Yae... I have had some sightings! Finally... am currently working on getting some decent photos of this years brewd.

In the meantime, am trying to stay COOL in this ultra HOT weather!

A BEAR-trasophy

So I am flitting about with the settings on my camera... when what do I spy... not ONE but TWO. Yae me... with the exception that my little focus thingy didn't focus as I wished it should. LOVING the fact that I spied TWO at one time... it's makes it easier on myself that I didn't spy even ONE this evening!

Because I always have something to say...

It took me three hours to wash the car the other day.

I didn't set out for this extended accomplishment, but it became just that... due to the title of this post....

It just so happened that people kept happening along my way....

In other things way less interesting, but worth noting....

I have made a new friend. Life is like that... I am thinking that this will be a seasonal friend... as I have met him in the "bearly there" spot down at Minnekhada. He has a 15 megapixel canon, but with a touch less zoom. The bear spotting has become a slight less lonely now... (well, with the exception of ONE bear sighting per evening....)

The PIP is currently becoming all lush and brown. She has spent two weeks at day camp. Now I must get her hair out of that thickly amassed pony tail, so it can blond up again, since she has become accustomed to summer time sunshine.

The boy is still a farmer boy, minus the farmer part. On a good day, he might even wear shorts, but that is because he is all crazy like and such. The GF is currently out of the province, but that hasn't stopped the phone calls. I asked the GF last night, as the phone rang at midnight, if the people that she was staying with .. "had a plan" ....

In other news considerably more boring...

The posting comes down today for the CASUAL Recreation Therapy position I applied for. HOPEFULLY all going well, the woodworkers will not apply for it... after ten zillion years of waiting... OK, it's more like 20 years worth of waiting, but in human patience years,... it does equal out to close to ten zillion. Yae me.

I missed my book club last evening... OK RATS. The problem with that is if I miss the meeting, then I can not get the book club book for next month. Yes, it would be an obvious note for me to point out... you would think the library staff would know, but they do not, even though it happens inside the library, with their books. But you know,...... you know.

OH... and I almost successfully had the boy get his X.BOX fixed. Now what good parent would want their child to actually get their X.BOX fixed.... ?? Well, a parent that has a 14 3/4 year old son with a GF, that's who.

AND.. because I am me...

Bought some little table for 10 bucks at the grocery store, kinda cute, black, round, with a glass top. I was walking to the car when the glass top fell off.... oh oops.. nothing securing the nicely rounded out glass. It's a good thing that I might know someone that lives REALLY close that does glass work. The trick is... will he do it.

I am going to go and see if I can secure some bear shots, before picking up the PIP....from her beach adventure.

If not... I will go back again later... just like clockwork... nothing random about me people.... N.O.T.H.I.N.G.

Magic lands

Have returned.

Not all hot and heavy...

BUT you know... we have to move slow on this sort of stuff.

I was able to see a BEAR last night... yes, just one down at the blueberry fields, but I will take ONE over NOTHING!

I heard that the 500 pounder was busy putting in potholes up in the back field. I am certain I will see him.

OH.. and the most exciting of exciting... I think I saw FAST bear. I love fast bear... as he maneuvers ever so swiftly, and with a real sense of purpose.

Must.Get.Blueberries.Now.....

Must.Get.Across.The.Road........

Get.Out.Of.Crazy.Womans.Way.......

You know... he says those sorts of things. In a fastly swift sort of way.

I do have ONE picture to post of my favourite summertime friends... but you know... he isn't actually that attractive looking. His head is small, or maybe triangular, yes more triangular.

Hopefully with the quickly approaching blueberry season... more bears will arrive... but you know.. I think they are very early this year, and the bears have not figured out that their party has started, and they are a bit too fashionably late. Almost too late, as the bus loads of people have arrived to pick...

OK.... must get someone off and running....

OH... and have been meaning to write this down... DEBBIE... do you remember WHEN we used to scrapbook. Yes, me neither.

Gin!

Last night I broke it to the PIP that we weren't going to go for chicken wings. This girl loves her chicken wings...my friend was right... once she knew of these deep dark secret, there would be no de-inviting her! Anyways..., by rules of the mother, she was de-invited last evening. She was sad for about 2 1/2 seconds, and with the promise of food coming her way... so you know... she's not wimpy that way...

So glad "I" decided to stay at home... we drank margaritas, ate chee-zee chips, and she learned how to play two card games... Gin Rummy, and Crib.

It was totally cool.

That PIP.

OH.. and she does have a brother... he does exist...

He is just hard to capture!

Todays job list:

1. Get the {ever-so-beatiful} PIP off to day camp.
2. Go for a walk.
3. Try not to answer the question... has anyone seen a bear along the trail yet....?
4. Answer the question... well, now that you have asked... oh look... there's a bear....
5. But some ant killer... because I like being an ant killer, that's why.
6. Buy some flowers... because what isn't a successful trip to the plant store, without buying some more flowers?
7. Take a moment and go pee... because I do not want what happened to me yesterday...to happen to me today... there's just not good things happening when you have a vicious cough, and a bladder that is in need of repair. Just not good I say people... AND too boot the bus was late, I had a dog in the car that was being cooled by air conditioning.. and there was no getting out to inquire as to WHERE the bus was.
8. Go do something outside.
9. Then go do something inside.
10. And then outside.
11. And then inside.
12. And then outside.
13. And then inside.
14. And then outside.
15. And then inside.
16. And then outside.
17. And then inside.
18. And then outside.
19. And then inside.
20. And then outside.
21. Oh.. the kitchen is still a bit messy.
22. Go outside.
23. Go inside.
24. Pause... the boy is playing the piano.
25. Still pausing.. the boy is still playing.
26. One longish pause... the boy is clearly up to something with all this playing.. but I do not mind.. I think I could hear Bohemian Rhapsody ten thousand times over, and I still do not think that I would get tired of it.
27. The boy has left the homestead... "shocking!"... now I am left...by myself...stare at my book, stare at the newest puzzle... look outside and have another AHA moment...
28. And the routine continues.... in and out... just doing things.
29. Wait.. I stop to pat the dog, and put the fan on her full blast. She likes that sort of thing....
30. Contemplate other ways of spending beautiful summer days....

Oh and I am so lucky...

The other night I declared to the family that I was not coming home until I saw a bear.

Yae for me I saw four.

Sad for me that I photod none.

Two of the four were having a furniture wrecking party in the forest. I spied on these two like an FBI agent sitting with a bag of bon bons watching "herself" on the big screen. It was classic comedy. Crashing and rolling, and tree scrambling and bushwhacking, and huffing and snapping and thumping and kajumping. All played out in the forest... where you really had to be a spy to catch this much black bear action.

I saw another two in the regular spot. One did a flying leap back into the the dark depths of green, and one just happily wandered singing a little "walking in the rain", except it wasn't raining, but rather cloudy. So he may have been singing a new age version, not sure.

It's a good thing that I did not make the same declaration last evening. I decided to call it quits around eight fourty. OH well... the season has been pretty dry so far, I can't have beastly adventures every night... but then.. I spied one... out he came from the great brambles and scooted across the road. He was a lovely size... quite possibly one from the furniture wrecking party crew the night before... he had that look about him.

So, instead I took a picture of some green blueberries. Just for fun. ... although I could have done that in my own backyard, except now they are ripening, and my clusters are not as big. So you know.. there is a real difference here people.

Well, must go beautify, this should take some time. The PIP on the other hand just woke up.. and she already is beautiful. Lucky Ducky I say.

The BOY is sleeping... he should be for a couple more hours... that's because I hear him prowling around in the night...oh a strange one he is.

AND .. I can't forget "The TILL". She has been brushed and ploofed and sprocketed and clicked. She's a stealth like oldish young looking german shepherdy like dog but really is very catlike. Now that her nails have been clicked she's all silent again. She's her own secret agent.. one minute she's nowhere in sight, and the next minute she is standing next to you... quietly sniffing about the scene.... just to take some notes, and stealth off again to explore more mysteries of the day. Maybe she really is the animal form of Columbo?

Alright... wish me luck in the beauty department...

Only about 2000 more to go....

Aaaahhh...... a topic that always interests me... religion. this isn't a book for those late night reading before bedtime stories... this one required actual concentration. Ha... something that I lack into the deep dark hours of the evening. This book was quite interesting... tracing back the roots of the Mormons & fundamentalism.

In the meantime.. I am quite glad that I am finished... as it was time consuming just thinking about it... now I can move onto the current stack of reading material.

HA!

OK... here is a microstock attempt. Hopefully the finicky fusspots will accept it.

The faces of Fuss

I like this girl.

Golden Ears Bridge Day

A Movie Star, an Eagle and a girl made in on the bridge, along with a whole bunch of thers!

Let's pretend.....

That I just ran into all of these guys this morning.... I am certain this will be the same for tomorrow!

301!!!!

Yes people, that's a big number!

And it's a celebration number!

It has nothing to do with me actually... just an observation point.

Huh.

Well... there is this little old lady that walks a little old dog... and I have been seeing them for years... down at the bear patch.... and while the little old lady in human years looks to be in her 80's... her favourite friend is that plus more in dog years. I pegged him for being at least three hundred years old last year... and I just saw him last night.... now at 301 years.

Silleh peoples...

In other things that I saw last night...

Two separate locations of BEAR footprints.
One Coyote
A family of deer.
A dog barking... which "made you look"..
In the direction... of a...
BEAR !

I had all but thought that the Minnehkada lands had had their wildlife hi-jacked, and they were living as imposters in the city, or visiting in peoples kitchens over on the island, only to be blown away with pepper spray, and shot for good luck. (#ucking RCMP officers so trigger happy it should be a crime in itself). (OH.. and to not offend those that not need offending.... they do DO good work... EXCEPT when it comes to managing bears, or immigrants, there must be a secret policy on these two coded ... "special handling".)

I digress......

Am very pleased with sightings. It has given me hope to bring my camera again in my travels to the wild country... 5 minutes down the road, from where civilization exists.

Monday weather

The boy is up... I am not sure why. It's not a school day... and its' 0810. This is a strange one.

He has given me his weather forecast...

"hugely creepy"

It's complete grey outside, some birds chirping, but otherwise completely silent.

A perfectly wierd start to a Monday morning.

Of course I can't figure out why he is up already. That's the real strange thing.

Eeeekkk.

It's almost been a week since I stopped by for a visit.

I have been here... I just haven't typed my way into the history books this week.

I managed to find myself some sort of wicked chest cough. It's sucking the life out of me....as long as I remain vertical I am fine.. OH.. and as long as I don't start coughing I am doubly fine. But then .. having a chest cold makes one cough. Then I am not fine. It also helps that I have a good underwear collection!

So... moving on...more EAGLET madness. The third eaglet named "Tiny" was knocked form the nest yesterday. He wasn't ready to fly. Mind you.. he was days away from fledge, but wasn't quite ready... the two sisters had fledged, and had made it back to the nest... and one of the sisters knocked tiny when he was sitting on the branch. Lot's of chaos in the chatroom of Tiny's upheavel from the nest. Hopefully the eagle rescue people will be able to help him.

The boy has been a permanent resident in the den the past couple of days. It has been very hot.. and the boy doesn't do heat. I have been a queen mother, and have left him be... just him, and his PLAY.STATION... playing games. I haven't harped on him to "do things"... other than remind him that HE needs to call the X.BOX people about getting his X.BOX fixed. OH.. and his GF has gone away for a couple of days... which is another reason why he has been inside the homestead. I did find out that the GF will be vacationing for a couple of weeks out of the province..... this should keep the boy in the homestead in complete shock I am sure!

The GIRL is busily being beautiful. Her and her ten million piece wardrobe. The MISSY went shopping with her girlfriends and practically bought the entire mall.... I think with exception of one pair of flipflops. I am sure of it.

The husbands boyfriend dropped off some loads of dirt yesterday. I love dirt. I love raking dirt.. I love spreading dirt... I love dirt. I think I am going to water my dirt today, that will be a special experience. Seriously.

The husbands boyfriend also lent the husbandman a chainsaw. Now ... around these parts it is simply taboo to lend out tools... as only a manly man has his own tools, and borrowing is forbidden... completely. As this is what the husbandman and his LONG TERM boyfriend from two doors over have told me. ( In fact the LONG TERM boyfriend says he needs to get his visits with the husbandman when he can.... one day the LONG TERM boyfriends talked THREE times in one day). They are a funny bunch, these boyfriends. ANYWAYS... with the chainsaw in hand ( actually the husbandman was chopping up wood for the boyfriends fire pit, which the husbandman visits almost every Friday night...) he chopped and chopped.. and he even chopped some branches that needed trimming from a number of years ago.. when the husbandmans chainsaw DIED. NOW.. if I had asked for the husbandman to chop up the long sticks for our fire pit... it would have been a SURE FIRE ... NO!
BUT.. because the boyfriend asked.... DONE. I think I might love the husbandmans boyfriend more than the husbandman himself... because now the backyard looks a bit tidier... and I didn't even have to ask.. it just happened.

OH.. and I did find out that our neighbours down the street have been holding out on us. They have a cherry tree. One that people can pick from.. and EAT. I can't believe it. The neighbours right beside us have a cherry tree, but they are useless to the humans, and only make the visiting racoons very happy. I couldn't believe when the husbandmans boyfriend and the PIP made their way to the vacationing neighbours backyard, and helped themselves to cherries. They were the BOMB! Says me who just bought (so called) 10 dollars worth at Safeway.

I would love to post some pics of some bears.. OH but wait... I dont' have any.... because I haven't seen any. What the hell is with that? The husbandman, The Till and myself went for a quick ride last night... and not a animal of any form could be found. I know I have to start seeing them soon, as I picked some blueberries from my bushes yesterday... so they have to be arriving in droves... they just have toooo!!!

Watched the "dog whisperer" this morning for several episodes. He is brilliant. Completely.

In the meantime... loving these cherries!

Cougar madness.

Liking more stories about the cougar.

My two yellow sunglassed biking boyfriends down at Minnekhada told me that they were caught in a photo with the cougar.

I don't know their names.... in my head I think of them as hot and hotter. I talk to them only in the summer-ish months.... when I hang around the BEAR lands. Perhaps really I hang around just to trip up thesesyellow sunglassed boyfriend bikers. Luckily for me... the husbandman was in the drivers seat yesterday evening when my favourite fellows caught up to us.

I think the cougar watch is a bit safer out there this summer ... knowing that the threat of real cougars still exist in the wild.... but have not taken over the human species as well.

Please pick a way....

To laugh at me...
Straight out GUFFAW.... or a splooch, or a zoink, plonk and WAP.

The PIP and I went out to do some investigative reporting last evening. We had just come back from a walk, when we noticed a helicopter carrying a bucket, or something from a long lead.

Off we went down to Minnekhada... straight into BEARLESS country... looking for this helicopter. I flew past the WHITE gates of the park, when I said to the PIP... " If I am not mistaken... that tree looks like it had a BEAR standing behind it..." and I kept on rolling.

Of course a moment later I decided to look in my rearview mirror...

And EVERYBODY knows the rest of the story.

" OH PIP!!!!" I yelled.... "I can't believe I didn't let my brain read what I saw...??" I yellled again... turning around the car.

Now ... the PIP is blond... and she just couldn't figure out what I was carrying on about. She was still in helicopter searching mode...

So there you go people.... and I thought that cougar sighting was a challenging endeavour... but alas the BEARLY THERE sightings have been equally challenging.... my hopes have been raised just a bit... even if the view was a rear end coming from my rear view mirror!

OH... and we did see the end of a search and rescue mission as well... because we are super sleuthes....

Psychotic event casefile #14, 763 1/2

So.

I am liking this whole BREATHING thing. It clearly works. I ensure you it does.

I was on the phone for 65 minutes earlier today.... to straighten out my T.V. bill. If I keep at it... these people will be paying me for accepting their services.

Went to return my OLD book to the library, yes, the one that I didn't read for last Wednesday. I didn't manage to get the new book, but did manage to get a soft cover copy of the old book, that I didn't read but had to have returned by today. Confusing. No.

Plans for life are fairly chaotic. The girl makes plans to go to the mall... as the mother and brother are going with the friend and the girl. Phone call back to me ... can I drive....? OK... for F%CK sake.... I said YES based on the fact that the mother was already going to the mall... Now I am dropping off, and picking up... when if it had been me they had asked first... I would have said forget it. Double F&CK.

Right... back to the breathing... stay present... stay focused... OK... much better.

The boy and his GF have left to wander the streets of Port Coquitlam. He has taken a guitar pick with him... so my guess is that he has headed straight over to Long &. McQuade for some grand piano action & guitar picking sounds.

I will check his bank account... to see if he stops and buys lunch... which is what I told him to do.

The Senior Centre people would like him to come back.... they asked him to volunteer the other day... which he isn't really into... but I made him go for you know... "just once".... and now they want him again... I suggested that they call and ask for him, since a mother doing the asking will not cut the mustard.

Who knows where he will wander... if you see him... honk & wave... for no other purpose other than scare him, and send him flailing homeward bound. Lucky thinking on my part.

I DID manage to SOMEHOW get Handi.dart booked. Lucky moi. That can tip someone over the edge.... it certainly can.

It's a good thing that I learned how to breathe last week at the Stroke Group.... because I could just be so dead right now. But I am not.. so I better go gather my pop can collection... and get myself some COLD hard cash! ah aha ha ahah

Bearly there

What's the deal?

Haven't seen a bear in weeks.
Going through withdrawal.

I did spy a family of eagles the other day passing through. Interesting. I was able to hear that familiar cry they make when the parents arrive with food. Of course keep in mind that these "eaglets" were practically the same size as their parents. They landed on the tree tops in the field next to us. That was cool... I never did see them fly off though....

In other things barely there....

Looks like I need a laundry lady come in and do a load or two. The floor is barely there. OK, that sounds tragic... the floor just before the washing machine is barely there.

I am running out of dish soap. it has been added to the deadly vinegar concotion that is busily killing off that evil white and green varigated creepy weed crap that is taking over my yard. My patience for NOT using chemicals is running thin.... and is pretty much BARELY there. I am hoping my regular vinegar purchases will begin to do its magic on this stuff.

Walking group in a bit... not sure who will arrive... with the rain.. I am certain I will not get many folks, as rain keeps people scarce.. and "barely there". I will wait to see the outcome....

So I coloured my hair the other morning... it's a good thing I had an eency amount of left overs.... after all was said and done... and the snowwhite had taken effect, I noticed that I had missed a spot.. and hence the colour was barely there... so ... I just smoothed some colour creme over the offending greyness... and it's been there ever since. Perhaps when I go to wash my hair .. I may be left with a patch of hair that is barely there... this rainy weather is wicked on the locks... it just gets curlier and frizzier... and my patience for doing anything with the mop on top is ... barely there.

Well... as always... time is ticking.

In need of a perk!

I am on the last bit of the coffee grounds... this is dangerous stuff to be without coffee in the homeland. Not that I couldn't walk 20 minutes in one direction, and 20 in other other to cure the addiction... I do like it available to me at all times.. just because.

Mind you... I am also out of wine. BUT that my friends is nothing new... I am forever out of wine.. I think I will go back to having it bottled. It's just so exciting to open up a cupboard and go.. "oh my.. a bottle of wine... yes, that will be nice". Really, it's christmas every day... or easter... if chocolate is your gift of choice.

Things being perked at the moment:

THE HAIR.

OK.. OMG peoples... just how I was able to go out in public with quad-coloured hair is beyond me. (The people with the pretty streaks don't count... because they paid actual money for that amount of colour). Mine just comes by it naturally. I am not into this natural greying process. Maybe one day, but today isn't it. Now the husbandman... he is quite good at it... and I like him like that... but if the tables were turned, and he had this ancient wife looking wife with her evil sense of humour throwing darts at him on an hourly (why go for daily!) basis.. I would need to the blakc eyeliner to draw a black dot on my nose.

So.. it is being perked as I type. Hopefully the flavour will not take long to infuse, as I have to be at the walking group in 1 hour.

In other things perky:

The lady at the Sr. Centre wanted to know if the hamsterson would like to come and volunteer Wednesday mornings to pour coffee. The hamsterson is violently shy when he wants to be... I do have an evil plan up my sleeve.... I would really like him to crack out of shell and "do" something that is out of his comfort zone.. (Like pouring coffee...., and putting muffins on plates)... it will do him good to put himself out there. Tomorrow is his first day. OH.. and the evil-ee hatched plan... that whole retainer thing that I made him buy.... well.. I put it on my M.Card, (of course airmiles!), and I will just pay for it... because I had told him that HE had to pay for it.... because I had already invested enough money into his orthodontics. Money talks... to a 14 year old that doesn't have any money. He might just like pouring coffee after all.

THE GIRL is completely put out. She wanted to pour coffee, she wanted to go and help.. she ... she... she... she.... I told her next year that she can pour all the coffee that she wishes for, and bake up a storm... that they would keep a place for the "baker" girl.

ACTUALLY under the PERK section... I found this 1 week program that was offered for 13 - 17 year olds.... of course the boy being the NON joiner that he loves to be does not wish to do it... too bad the girl is one year too young to join... as she would love to do it... perhaps next year. Someone remind me!

HOPEFULLY someone finds my little pictures that have been accepted in the microstock world. I had 5 pictures accepted,and 2 rejected. The rejects are based on the amount of lens flare. Of course the whole point is to find a picture worth uploading.. and now that is a challenge... I can have 300 % of my pictures accepted... but the whole point is to sell them.. perhaps eventually that will happen.... I thought my 3.51 were big gains... but the BIL said to me that he had 250.00 dumped in his account!... on a picture that sat for over a year.

More perks that have come to mind....

The husbandman helped me wash my car the other day. It was by accident. He happened to be waiting for his BOYFRIEND to fly over our houses... and being a diligent, and good boyfriend.. he patiently waited... and as we waited I just happened to want to wash the car... (little did I know that he had a greater purpose)... but then along came our visiting neighbour.. (he is currenlty working in Toronto for 6 months...) while his family stays here. So they pull in... and I start telling the ever funny Mr. Ed that there has been a shift in the neighbourhood.. and this is how things are done now... (as he watches the husbandman wash the car....), but in reality... the shift was the husbandman waiting for the boyfriend to do the fly over... it just so happened that my PERK of the day was the coincidence of flying and car washing.

Well... I am off to do things with the hair. Hopefully the colour will find it's way back to the top of my hair, rather than on the ends, it would be most helpful in the "de-clowning" department!

Good evening peoples

What day is the first day of summer..?

We had a clap of thunder and huge rainstorms earlier today.

I just can't think of when the first day of summer arrives.

Our lawn looks weathered and dry like it normally looks at the end of August...

Hooray for rain.

Scared the crap out of the little Missy, so much that I wrapped a big towel around her on the couch, and left her there to settle down for a bit... of course that was after she stood out in the downpour and got completely drenched. ( I am talking about the DOG here..., not the blond thing.. although she would have done the same thing.. but I couldn't have called her the LITTLE missy... as she is almost as tall as me.. ... OMG)

I did go out and inspect my make shift garden way out yonder. My second row of peas are just beginning to peak up... I will add a new row next week!

The girlie-Q is back with her father. None of this make shift made up events such as fathers day for us... the big man installed peoples windows a couple doors over, and a couple doors down. I reminded the boy that it was fathers day... I think he has forgotten.

BUT... alas on this day 11 or 12 years ago we did find our second German Shepherd dog... Miss Ellpee... or more likely named Till, or Till Till, or Tilly, or Miss Milly, or Monkaay, or Miss, or Elp, or CryBaby, or MissStopThat. She's slightly deranged, and I have know idea why. It couldn't possibly be that she has been subject to this homestead for the last 11 or 12 years. Really she was named L.P. for "lost pup"... but has managed to acquire 10 zillion names since her 11 or 12 years of living here. The last 4 1/2 years she has had the homestead to herself, with the death of the first and foremost evilest of queens the first German Shepherd herself... Cicely. (Because I am a LINK LOSER... you might have to click on some links from MANY MANY MANY moons ago to catch a picture of the evilest of queens ... I could go and hunt for one.. but you know .. that would require something called work.

Writing of working... lucky me.. it's coming to a bit of an end for the summer. I am leaving my group for the summer, and will take on a new adventure at the hospital... but only temporarily... because you know.. I am not a real worker bee, but a tricked up long time stagnant worker bee...

OK.. and charged the battery for the camera... not sure why... slim pickings on the BEAR adventures.... surely to GAWD they haven't all been trapped, drugged and hauled away to higher grounds....and in the meantime am hunting for a COUGAR. Not trying to mimic one, that would not be kind.

BUT.. on that note have just started watching the DOG WHISPERER.... and that Cesar fella that says "shhhssshh" to dogs with his spanish accent is quite unbelievably beautiful.

Well... as any good husband should do on this made up tree-killing event of some sort... I am watching him make dinner. What a good fellow.

I must go read my book now... it has something to do with the LDS. Latter Day Saints... should be an interesting read.

Things that make me say...

1. Oh Shit.
2. Oh for F@CK sake
3. Oh freaking fridgemagets
4. oooops.

It's book club night on Wednesday. It's a thick one this time. I am on page "prologue"

I find out the party bus adventure that the boy went on last evening ended up with alcohol being passed around. AND not by the organized adult who was supervising this affair, and yet somehow it made it's way on the bus. (No wonder the DAD looked like he was about ready for a heart attack when I picked the boy up).

I really need to colour my hair before I go out this morning, I think I forgot that little fact.

The boys friend GF broke up with him on Face.book.

Over and almost out.

I went to the boys "ending ceremony" last night. Yes, it's a good thing the husbandman didn't break his plans to go to this "BIG" event.

The gym was sardined up like it was the last piece of scrapmetal around, just before entering a pressure cooker.

They had a couple of people speak, and a group of kids put a slide show together. The principal read a story. (OK.. this principal guy reminds me of my Gramerica son... but just a little more advanced in age). And that was it!

What about the sports teams?
What about the hobbie groups?
What about the kids in band & rockband?
What about the kids that made an effort in the school?
What about a certificate for "thanks for coming to middle school!"

When the Gramericason entered into middle school, all the teachers and leaders talked about was getting involved, getting involved & getting involved. Three years later of "getting involved" and no one is recognized for it? Now I must admit.. this is coming from a parent that has a child that was in NO WAYS involved in anything extra curricular... except to hold up the building, but that was it.

I guess this really was the ultimate in a "leaving" theme.

Thanks for coming, now go.

I did manage to meet up with some of "the boys" influences, and we chatted. The rockband teacher loved him... because he was the first & only kid to play a perfectly gifted heavy as hell "hammond" organ for the rockshow. Mr Rockband teacher said he loved that... as he has been waiting for "someone" to come along, and really play it. He said there were students that had come along, and tried it out, but the big sound scared them, and they didn't really embrace playing it. He knew he had found the perfect someone when the boy with the big personality (his words not mine) sat down and made the thing sing.

Another teacher found me, and wished me luck with my boy. She didn't teach him, but had much to do with him. ( I didn't ask for what... because... why would I do that..?) It was very nice that she said to me that she was blown away by this boys personality, and his incredible honesty. ( I still didn't ask....but beginning to be terrified here....) It was nice to hear from her that although his grades didn't spell out a very bright child, he in fact was, and hopefully maturity will help him reach his potential. Although she said... his personality alone would probably just take him places. This is all his father's fault.

The crazy principal invited the boy over to his home with the $27,000 dollars worth of recording equipment, so the crazy principal said to me. The crazy boy accepted. The crazy principal & the crazy boy have spent a lot of time together in the music room. The crazy principal is also a "musician", and talks at the speed of light. Him and the boy are probably related in some way.... they have to be... they even moved their fingers the same way when I took a picture of them.

So there it is... my boy... getting older. I am thinking that the real thing that grew these past three years was his personality. In the fall his stage becomes three times the size. OMG.

OH.. and had a conversation with a friend down the street. The daughter has joined cheerleading. The daughter is a straight A student. Nice for her. The mother said that if the child does not maintain her straight A average then she was going to be ripped from the cheerleading team, because being a cheerleader will not get you a job. AND there are three practices a week.

OH... so straight A's get you a job? I see.
Three practices a week also is time consuming for a parent.

Houston, we have a problem.

Straight A's does not spell out to me that in fact equals effort, which ends in job prospects.

Straight A's is a package.
It tells me that a child is willing to fit whatever mould that are the requirements of the teacher.
Straight A's also says that you may be a good test taker, and not suffer from anxiety. Lucky for you.
Straight A's are very subjective.

I have seen straight A efforts, and straight A work ethics, and straight A exceeding expectations all met on a criteria sheet, and a C+ grade in return. I am no pansy when it comes to you get out of it what you put into it... but I have been witness to the "not so in the box" attitude.

So ya... go cheerleader go... hopefully you will not fall to your mother's expectations... and be ripped out from yet again something that you might enjoy in your little life, beyond getting A's to satisfy one's regrets.

OH, I think I just hatched a lime here....

Away you go girl....

Here's the missy checking tire pressure, and filling up for an adventure.. of some form. I am not invited...

Handley life recap....

OH trust me... it's simple and quick. I am not into the high stakes living with DRAMA attached to it. ICK!

Friday night the boy had his rockband show with the school. It was quite the small time event. Some of these 13-14 year old kids have some true budding talent. They started the show with "Carry on My Wayward Son". It was quite good... and I am going to say.. I was most impressed with the keyboardist. Not only did he flit from organ to piano, and then jumped up to the bongos, he played it in the dark. Except when the bongo solo arrived, he had lights on him then.. because you know.. it's hard to hit two bongo drums correctly, rather than two separate keyboards, and find the right keys at the same time. Further into the show the boy played "Sweet Home Alabama" on the piano, and it sounded brilliant against his fellow bandplayers. He also played the electric guitar in a song called "chop Suey", but the singing was unfortunately unforgetable, so the music went on the way side. Interesting though.. he does play the song on the acoustic guitar, and it doesn't sound that bad. He was supposed to play "Enter Sandman", but two people could not be at the performance, so it had to be knixed at the last moment. Too bad.. it sounded good. It was lovely to see him in his element.

Saturday the FUSSY DOLL went off to her babysitting course. She is now a fully ticketed babysitter girl. I appreciated the fact that I dumped her into this course, all on her lonesome, and away she went to do her thing. I am trying to think about what I did Saturday night... but that thought is escaping me... I do remember the phone ringing at 10:00, and it was the MIL telling the husbandman that she had a mouse in her house. Oh dear.

Sunday was full of adventures... of course the day started off with a bang. It really did. Not sure what the "big bang" was... but it was definitely just that.. " a big bang". After that out came the hoses, and then the laundry machines, and then the dishwasher, and the kitchen sink. But not to be burdened with house work.. the PIP and I left to go for the Strides for Strokes at Peace Arch park. It was exciting... and I was nervous about missing the turn off so I would have to go through the border... because going through the border has turned into such a PITA, and not because of the documentation, it's the piss-ass comments they fire out, and one mistaken eyebrow ruffle could mean that your car gets ripped apart to be searched... and then you are left with the mess, and the price tag of having it put back together.

Alas.. we made the turn-off. Whew.
OH.. and how exciting for me... I chatted to Mark Madryga. Now the thing is.. I like this guy. He has a genuine good natured character about him, and is always will to take the joke, and take it in style. He strikes me as the underdog, but always comes out ahead. Of course he is also the weatherman.. and I watch him every morning.. with usually the day starting out... "good morning mark". I do not say hello to my husband.. after all .. we have been sleeping together in the same bad all night... so it's always "good morning mark". It was the Fuss that lead me to him.. the poor guy was just trying to eat his hotdog.. and I said to him... " Hurry up and shovel that hotdog.. I am only the next person in line to talk to a good weather guy". He should have taken off running at that point.... because the PIP and I went on to tell him stories from the Handley Homeland. We both claimed we were a regular average family.. but of course we inquired as to whether Kristi Gordon was going to change her name, .. .only because our stuffed dog prance loves yelling out ... "Kristi Gordon.. Oh I love her!!!... but where's Mark?" to the TV when the weather comes on.. yes, people, we tried to sell him on the fact that we were normal.... as he choked and gagged his hotdog down.

WE drove home from Peace Arch Park, and then headed out to Pitt Meadows, where the Golden Ears Bridge was having a grand opening street festival of sorts. There was thousands of people making their way onto the bridge on foot. It was incredible to walk up this massive structure, down the centre lane, and know that this event will never happen again... it was totally cool. Luckily for us... we missed the backlog of line-ups of people that had happened earlier into the day.. and all we did was walk up and down the bridge... totally cool.

Then we went to the Mall. It wasn't a good mall... I feel sorry for the little merchants in this mall... I am not even sure how these people can make a living .. there was barely anyone in the place. AND.. there wasn't an ARDENE'S. That is the most favourite of all the places to be.. at the "coquitlam centre" .. where we normally hang out.

And then Monday came along, and we HAD to get to the mall so the boy could buy a purple shirt, and then I could assist in retrieving a blind, snarling, terrified dog out of the middle of an intersection, with crazy people screaming at me... but you know what.. holy smokes people.. all I could focus on was this totally terrified blind dog hopping around the middle of a fairly busy intersection. Of course I had a little carload of the boys friends with me... and they all wondered what was up... and the boy told them.. this is regular life with us. It was all very strange.. and like I say and think.. it happened so fast, I could almost in fact not remember that it actually happened.. although it did take some time to get this little dog off the road... and the cars were slowly backing up all over the place. OH well...I think I was instrumental in asking the owner to stop screeching and freaking at his dog.. that as bizarre. He was telling it to go home... except it was blind... and the noise and the confusion.. yes, you can see where this is going... and it wouldn't let anyone near it.. as it was terrified, so it was snarling and seething. But there is me.. "come on buddy.. good dog.. come over here... and then a guy with a bike was gently nudging it off the road...after it realized.. I think .. that we were helping it...

OK... must go help myself.. and take me for a walk!

What's worse

coffee or wine?

Because that is what is going to end up on my friends computer screen when she reads my comment I left her. It all depends on the time of day she's reading...

What is this film that ahas crossed out skies.

Not sure what it is... took the day off to investigate!

OK.. not really... going to Strides for Strokes.... it is down at Peace Arch Park... certainly I will find blue skies there.

Must wake the PIP she is accompanying me.

OH.. and I must get across that NEW bridge today!... perhaps I will go on foot... and I can get some photos before traffic hits the pavement... FORVER!

the PIP and I

Doing our thing. What ever that is. Drinking, showcasing, blowing. You know.. that kind of stuff.

It's always good to pay attention

Somebody wasn't paying attention in flying class last week...

the Fledge

Now that the lovely little eaglets are almost ready to fledge I have opened up the zap live screen to see an empty nest at times. I quickly check the seek points to see if someone has captured the final moments in the nest... but so far, the now not so little eaglets are still perched around the eight feet worth of nest high up in the tree top.

I am not sure how I am going to manage to waste away 15 minute chunks of time staring at a computer screen in the coming weeks, once the triplets make their way in the world.. oh wait.. I believe I can already do that... but you know... this is nature.... and I do love the watching.... although it was pretty intense a couple of weeks back when the youngest had his foot/leg caught in twine almost around a tree... yes, I couldn't have made it back for that regular viewing had there been that horrible demise in the nest... but fortunately the greater of good was on this little guys side, and he survived the harrowing event.. had he been a slight bit younger, it would have been over for him.. I think he sat for a whole day snaggled up next to the tree, and the parents never went to him with food.

Anyways.... back to the fledge... it will be lovely to see them leave the nest.. and I will always wonder .. when I stare up into the great blue skies.. and wonder if these are one of the boys or girls I watched grow. Cool, no?

In the meantime... I have the little family doing their owning fledgling activities. The boy with his GF, the husbandman learning his way around the computer world, and downloading & uploading his own pictures, with my very minimal assistance.. and then I have the girly girl flashdriving her slideshow for the teacher, checking and filling the jeeps tires with air, running the lights for the "MacBeth" play she was in... and then of course her grand stage appearance witht he show stopping ONE line: " In all my years I must confess, I have never seen such dire distress".

Me on the other hand... I just water my plants and watch them grow. AND I AM OK WITH THAT... not complaining, not whining.. just stating... oh but wait.. I must include my fantastical state of laundry detail that I run... and the incredible ability to amass airmiles, with the least amount of money involved in earning them. I haven't told the family yet.., but I will tell the world.. because it's on the edge of your seat, up to minute life reporting that gets you through the day... I have enough toilet paper and cereal to get the WHOLE crescent through the next toilet paper makers strike & Rice Krispy CRISIS. One would believe that I am starting early for the Alzheimers Club with the hoarding of articiles... but alas I will blame it on airmiles... for the moment.

On the bear front... I haven't seen any lately.. and of course... this is what makes front page news.. one was shot DEAD, and a mother and her two cubs were relocated. Not that I know what level of relocation this actually was... hopefully it was in a optimal location, but not heavenly...

AND finally.. the boy has his big rock band appearance tomorrow night. It's a Friday night, not sure how the husbandman is going to SURVIVE this one... but I did remind him in an evily wifely motherly manner that THIS is what having children is about... WATCHING them, and their accomplishments. Date night will have to start later... G.A.W.D. I didn't have to really evily tell him... I think he knows this fact... I was just serving up an obvious reminder.

so ya.... got to get to the obligations now.... AND I am going to buy myself a new rake.. not sure what happened to the other TWO rakes, but they are gone... the wire like ones, I already have FOUR rakes.. but not the metal ones.. that get to the bottom of your lawn... with the advancement of NO WEED KILLER allowed in the city ... I am going to have to get rid of the lawn weeds at a quicker rate than I have been.... hopefully the 5.88 will be all that it takes.

To rake or not to rake.

That really is the question for the moment.

I was going to rake earlier... the problem with that is I needed to take care of my headache first.

So at 0730 I take 2 Tylenol for Arthitis which are 650 mg of Tylenol each. I was hoping that would take care of all the pain that keeps me moving, as well as the pain that was running through my head. Joke was on me.

At 10:00 I take 2 ES Tylenol for the headache now. All the while still hoping that it would go away so I could begin the raking process... before the wind picks up... because the wind generally picks up ... even if you might not notice it. the deal with the raking process is the fact that under the trees it is extremely dry. AND.. I wanted to have a shower after this grand event... because one is not left as clean as one starts in this event.

Dry. Dirt. Wind.

It's a lowsy combination.

The sister called at 10:20.

That was the end of the raking story.

OH.. and tonight.. the Miss Fussy is in her schoolplay... (as are the rest of the kids in her class...), and they are actually performing MacBeth... it should be an exciting 30 minutes.