Well isn't that Just Ducky !!

Odd choices....

2012-01-22T22:14:00.000-07:00

Something that's always important to me is to stand up to the injustices in the world, even the small ones that some people don't think matter. But why don't they matter? If something is making someone unhappy, or many people unhappy, it matters! So unexpectedly to me, after a long absence, my next few posts will be something many of my original followers will not quite "get" and completely of topic from anything else I've written about.

I needed a central place to send people for information. The people I'm hoping will come are those that play games with me, literally lol. I have become, for lack of a better word, addicted to a certain genre of game on my iPhone. Not because of the game, but because of the lovely people I've been blessed to meet on there. The developers are not customer friendly, there are loads of glitches, it's time consuming, and if you're not careful it can get expensive. But the people we meet, they're awesome!

So recently the developers/owners of this line of games made some very huge changes without notifying their customers. Nothing, no warning, no notice, people just slowly realised things weren't quite right. The word got around, players got upset, we went on the forums, some sent emails, to no avail. So I've taken up the cause, to stand up and encourage others to make a stand as well. Together we'll either make a small change in the world, or we'll walk away knowing we did our best, and having made many more wonderful friends in the process. Wish us luck please!!

Love & prayers,

~Shannon ** ƸӜƷ **

Monday Motivation: Simplicity

2011-09-06T15:38:00.001-06:00

This week's Monday Motivation is brought to you by Tuesday. You see, Monday was a holiday here, Labour Day in fact, as it was for the rest of Canada, the US and a few others I believe but I'm too lazy to check into that right at this moment. Because of the holiday, Tuesday feels like Monday so I'm going to just go with that skip Tuesday altogether and we'll go straight to Wednesday tomorrow. Yes, my logic is a little twisted, but if you've known me for any amount of time I'm sure you've already come to the conclusion that I can be a little twisted ;).

To be perfectly honest I'm not feeling terribly motivated today at all. I'm crispy fried from the weekend and far too much time in the sun (my own fault) with no hat and no sunscreen, possibly some sun/heat stroke and it's Monday (in a Tuesday sort of way) and I just want to lay down and do nothing. My biggest frustration and what leaves me feeling utterly overwhelmed is clutter; I need to find a way out of the clutter and into simplicity but each time I try to start I throw up my hands and cry out, "I can't, it's too much for one person". But I need to find a way to push past the, "I can't" and show myself that I most definitely can. Anyone else find themselves frustrated this way? Have you found a way out of the rut? Please feel free to share.

Love & prayers,

~Shannon ** ƸӜƷ **

Monday Motivation: Give 'em Attitude

2011-08-08T13:13:00.000-06:00

With my second official photography shoot nearly behind me (just a few more images to process) I've taken away quite a few lessons that I won't soon forget. While I've been upset to the point of tears, hurt, and so angry I was shaking I am glad I'm learning sooner rather than later as I can move forward with even more confidence. There will always be people that take advantage, try to walk all over you and think that treating you like garbage makes them somehow right, but in the end we teach others how to treat us and I am not garbage so I will not let anyone treat me like garbage.

It's all about attitude and confidence. Others can justify their behaviour if they choose but I know, with full confidence, that I have behaved in a fair and professional manner and will continue to do so. I cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way but I do choose how I react to them. I cannot change that sometimes things don't go the way I hope or plan, but I am adaptable. Life is 10% of what happens to us and 90% how we react. I am in charge of me and my attitude and I will continue to move forward into the world of professional photography with my head held high and a few good lessons tucked under my belt for good measure.

What lessons in attitude have you learned recently? Do you feel you reacted well, or maybe not so great but learned what not to do for next time? We teach others how to treat us, together let's teach them that we are not garbage, because God don't make junk! Have a great week my friends!

Love & prayers,

~Shannon ** ƸӜƷ **

ps. Please join me on my new facebook page Ordinary Miracles Photography and on twitter :)

Monday Motivation: Goals & Pipe Dreams

2011-08-01T09:48:00.004-06:00

I was planning a different post today, yesterday I was planning this one but it didn't get written. That's kind of how I roll. I think I'm going to do something, I change my mind, then I change it again, then something else forces me to change it to something else and I end up arriving somewhere completely different than I expected. Good thing I'm flexible, but please don't ask me to touch my toes!

It's been awhile, did you miss me? I hope so because I've missed you and I've missed writing but I've been so busy and then in recovery from being so busy that I've not had time to barely think about writing. I'm hoping this will get back to being a regular thing and maybe, just maybe because I'm not so good with schedules, I will have this whole theme thing going, Monday Motivation. Has a fun ring to it, don't you think? ♪Yes, I really do think.♫ Sorry, I've got this thing, where a phrase will remind me of a song, and then I start singing the phrase, then the entire song, then I find the song if I have it and play it at least five times. Drives my boys crazy, and now that I know it drives them crazy, naturally I do it even more, mwahahahaha! I know, I'm an evil mum, say no more. (Scrambling to figure out why I don't have Alanis Morissette in my iTunes list... grrrr)

I digress (hmmm, not me). Today's Monday Motivation is Goals & Pipe Dreams. I know, you're surprised aren't you? That title is very misleading. A few days ago I was reading this blog (which is not at all about goals but kinda fits and is very helpful, really) and it occurred to me that I'd always thought I had lots of goals, and while I know you're "supposed" to put them in writing and create "SMART" and "KISS" goals, I always figured, well they're in my head, I know what my goals are. I think about them enough. In fact, I think about them so much we're intimate friends. But what I've come to realise (and probably already knew but tried to ignore) is the ideas in my head, those are pipe dreams, and until I get those goals out in the open, in black in white and in my face so to speak, they will remain as pipe dreams. Pipe dreams are great, we need them, they keep us creative and give us hope but some of these things I really want to see come to fruition. So it's time to start not just thinking about my goals, but putting those little suckers down in writing.

I'm going to start small based on my priorities and creating the list using the Six Most Important Things idea (I'll blog about this later). So, yada yada, so on & so forth, here is what I want to accomplish this week:

Family: Play with my boys in some manner at least 90 minutes every day. Not electronic play or watching movies, but real play; lego, drawing, watching them do one of their plays, geocaching. And it doesn't have to be all at once but I do want to spend at least 90 minutes with them.
Health: Walk at least 4 miles outside & continue healthy eating plan. Break up the walking over the week of course and it doesn't have to be power walking or even brisk walking but something that at least gets my heart rate up a bit. Lots of healthy fluid (this does NOT have to be only water but should avoid soda pop and coffee), veggies, fruit, protein and some whole grains. If I indulge in a small treat, don't beat myself up but don't let it sidetrack.
Home: Plan and start 31 Bags in 31 days challenge (or something to that effect). Include the boys and find larger items to sell online.
Finance: Submit 2010 tax return, complete budget. (Actually got my tax return submitted yesterday *big grin* lol).
Business: Finalise post processing of photos & deliver. Including updating flicker, 500px, blogger & perhaps looking at business cards & website.
Goals: Find an accountability partner, or team. Would you like to join me?? We don't have to have the same goals, but provide encouragement and support. Come to the dark side, we have cookies ;-).

Tag, you're it!

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

Source: backtoherroots.com via Shannon on Pinterest

Simple Pleasures

2011-05-25T21:09:00.000-06:00

Once upon a time there was a young woman. She had two small boys, lived in a small, rented condo and had very little to call her own besides that. But this young woman found pleasure in the simplest things, the smell after a rain fall, watching her boys grow and learn, a good workout, a good mark on a college paper, and her quiet time at the end of the day. This was the time when the boys were tucked in for the night, she would turn on her favourite music, often James Taylor, lay on the rug on the floor and just relax to the sound of the music.

The years accumulated, the young woman started moving towards middle age, she had two more boys. Then her illness started to really take its toll on her body, life became terribly complicated, she lost a marriage, her first two boys grew up and her body was so very very tired and in pain and she forgot the little pleasures in life. Physically, mentally, spiritually and financially broken she questioned why her life had come to this chapter.

One spring, as she leaned back in her chair, feet up, listening again to Mr. Taylor, she realised that the memories of enjoying the simple things in life were returning. Despite all the trials and tribulations, she was indeed very blessed in her life, a sound roof over their head where she can watch her younger two boys grow and learn, listen to the gentle rain, and able to enjoy the sounds of the country life mingled with the music that makes her heart smile.

Today, may you remember the simple pleasures and the abundant blessings of life and always remember, you've got a friend.

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

Babysteps, Patience and Goals, oh my.....

2011-05-25T09:22:00.000-06:00

I've been having a conversation with a lovely lady I met via an FM/ME CFS group on facebook, you can find Cynthia's very creative blog, "Creative ARTitudes", here. On Cynthia's facebook fan page she was asking her readers about methods for scheduling and tracking systems that they found effective and I thought it really lends itself well to what I wanted to post about today, babysteps.

Babysteps are VERY hard for me! I don't mean, "oh it'd be nice if I could just do it and it'd be done", but it drives me absolutely crazy(er) that I can't just do it and be done! Do what you ask? Anything and everything! A good example, I want a perfect website with the perfect URL, stunning and attractive design, pages for all the passions in my life and my blog, something that will have readers signing up in droves begging for more Ducky-isms, and I want it done YESTERDAY! Everyone likes to see their passions come to fruition, but if you throw in ADD, well patience may be a virtue but it's nearly improbable for those of us with this lovely challenge in our lives. And of course add to that I have FM (fibromyalgia) and CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) (and a multitude of other nonsense) making things (namely me) move even slower and thus increasing my frustrations. BUT one thing I have that none of this has taken away from me is HOPE and DREAMS and if babysteps will eventually get me to realise these, then I will continue to plug along despite my lack of patience.

So, step one, goals. What are my goals and what can I do to reach those goals? My big picture goal, to see this blog turn into a website that is helpful and informative for those that share some or even all of my passions (oddly enough I do find that it's true, birds of a feather do flock together - I do wish the magpies would stop pooping on my deck though - literally and figuratively). Big goals are great but all too often we set them with no plan of action and with no little goals to help buoy our spirits and keep us going along the way, then we find ourselves stuck, giving up and feeling like a failure. So my first babystep goals are, amalgamate all my blogs together in one place, publish a new article at least 3-4x a week, publish photos in at least 2 of those articles. Sounds simple enough :).

I would love to hear from my readers, what works for you to keep you on schedule and to keep track of all your ideas? What helps you reach your goals?

As always, sending my prayers and blessings,

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

Oops.....

2011-05-23T10:21:00.000-06:00

Okay, okay, I know in my last post I'd wrote this long explanation of why my blog title, "And now these words from our sponsor..." was fitting, sort of. But to be perfectly honest with you, I never quite felt like that was what I was looking for. Besides, isn't it a woman's prerogative to change her mind? ;)

A few days ago a friend posted a link to his blog. I bemusedly read his recent entry and then I had one of those light bulb moments. Or more commonly known these days as a "headdesk", whereupon the individual bangs their head repeatedly on the desk all the while repeating the mantra, "DUH!!!!" The posting itself, although very interesting, had absolutely nothing to do with this epiphany, but rather his blog title, DanOCan.com

In the world of forums and geocaching and other such interesting geek activities that I enjoy taking part in, I am known as Just Ducky, or Ducky for short. Only online mind you, not that I'd not mind being called Ducky as a nickname, after all it is my fondness for all things "duck" that brought about the moniker to begin with. Anyway, I digress, Dan, is known as DanOCan and I began thinking about that. I really quite like Just Ducky, it's not uncommon, but still clever enough and I think it suits me. So, after consideration, and some quick research, my new, and hopefully permanent, blog title was born.

I would like to formally welcome you to my blog,

"Well isn't that Just Ducky !!"

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

And now, these words from our sponsor...

2011-05-11T11:23:00.000-06:00

I've been struggling with the title for my blog for months now. Since I hope, perhaps, maybe one day, my readership will grow by leaps and bounds, even astonishing me (a girl can dream), then I figure I should have a catchy title that is memorable and meaningful to what I write about. Not that simple since I don't really have a niche, I just throw stuff out there with regards to what's going on around me at the moment. Life, as it would turn out, is my niche!

Quite frankly, I felt my original title was actually condescending to my children and since they are so important to me, it didn't make sense to continue with that one. The current title was just stuffed in as a "place holder" until I could come up with something better. It's been there awhile now so I surveyed a couple of friends about it, they said it was catchy as is. Great! But what does it mean to me? That all my blog posts will all be trying to sell something?? I don't think so! That's not my style at all.

I continued to ponder my blog title and as I increase my activity in publishing more posts it grew in my mind that I really need to determine if it is suitable as is or do I find something else. As Winne the Pooh would say, "Think, think, think". Who is my sponsor? I don't have one. Hmmmm. And then it dawned on me, my sponsor is God. Granted, I don't feel that all of my posts are lead by the Lord, but definitely a good percentage of what I say comes from what I feel are lessons He is trying to teach me, or at the very least, inspired by seeds He plants in my mind. The rest is just my humble opinion that anyone is welcome to take or leave ;). Can you think of a better sponsor? I sure can't, and while I won't claim to be speaking on His behalf, I am feeling lead to share these lessons so, perhaps, the title can stay as is. What do you think?

Completely off topic, can anyone explain to me why cheese, although lovely as is, tastes so much better when melted?!?

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

Having a Martha House the Mary Way

2011-05-10T16:29:00.000-06:00

I think I'm breaking records today! Two posts in one day and four posts published in less than two weeks :). But I'm nothing if not kind and although most of my readers (all 5 of you, or so ;) ) are likely already aware of what book I was referring to in my previous post, I thought it may be cruel to make anyone wait until tomorrow. Besides, I'm ready to get this show on the road !

Without further ado, the eBook that I'm reading and working from, "31 Days to Clean: Having a Martha House the Mary Way", by Sarah Mae, blogger and author.

What I've come up with thus far, having completed Day 1 and started Day 2, is a very basic principle which I knew but was having trouble applying: Work from the inside out. The reason, the true reason, FlyLady hasn't been working for me is because I've been trying to fix what is external in hopes of repairing the internal. Not sure about you, but that doesn't really work too well. What we feel tends to lend itself to how we behave, in other words, our lives and homes reflect what is inside our hearts. If we are confused, lost and broken in our hearts, no matter how hard we try to hide it from others, it invariably comes out in our actions and how we approach the world around us.

When this finally hit home for me I realised that I cannot fix what is outside: my family, my home, my body, my health, if I am broken on the inside. Any attempt to fix what is external will be undermined by what resides in my heart. Please feel free to join me, with God as our pilot, to put our hearts and our homes in order.

In Day 1 Sarah asks us the question, "Why Clean?" So I completed the page she obligingly included to help determine this and I came up with not just a Mission Statement, as she suggests, but also a purpose and vision. I'm sure it will be revised over time, but it's definitely a start in the right direction.

Purpose: To provide, for my boys and I, a home of abundant love & joy, where God's grace flourishes.

Vision: To create a home and family life where we find peace and strength, where we lift each other up with words of encouragement.

Mission Statement: To have a home where each of us can feel safe, an oasis from the harsh world, a place where we can be our creative selves. A home where we learn & grow, where mistakes are met with understanding, graciousness and hope, without judgement.

I had more to say, but truthfully I can't recall it right now, so I'll just leave it at that. Here I am at the beginning of yet another chapter and prayerfully hope that I can follow through and find peace of mind and of heart. Please, feel free to share where you're at in your journey. What does it mean to you to have a peaceful heart?

Until next time, May the Lord bless you and keep you! *HUGS*

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

Life is NOT a Dress Rehearsal!

2011-05-10T13:25:00.001-06:00

Cue sound effect: *tires squealing* I slam on the brakes and pull a full 180° U-Turn. I've been going about this all wrong!! What exactly do I mean by, "this" you ask? To put it bluntly, pulling my head out of the sand and getting my life together! This is not a dress rehearsal Shannon, this is the real thing!

Over and over, God has revealed to me that He does have a plan for me. I see it, I point out the reveal, then I continue my merry way trying to do things by MY rules. Here's a big surprise, it's NOT working ! Yesterday I hit a pretty big low, I spent most of my day either on the verge of, suppressing or just full out tears. I was teetering on the edge of a severe breakdown, so I did what any girl would do, I called my mom and sobbed, "I need my mommy". And I do, it's no lie, I need her love, her support and her respect. But what I didn't initially hear in my despair was I also need my daddy. My Abba Father. I know I love Him, that I don't doubt, but I've not been very good about calling Him and letting Him know that. (Hmmm sounds like a familiar complaint I have). But of course, like all parents, He was waiting for my call. Cue God's timing and a simple post by a friend on facebook. "Check out this eBook, it's on sale, today & tomorrow only". One review on the book's web site and I was sold, because it spoke volumes to me.

“Sarah, thank you, from the bottom of my heart for this wonderful resource! God bless Flylady – she’s a tough cookie – but I just cannot keep up with her, and I cannot find motivation in her methods. This book, however, with the Mary and Martha approach, gives me not only motivation to clean my home, but also to haul out my Bible and spend time in the Word, searching out scripture to go with the daily devotional… My mother and I are doing this book together. She lives 8 hours away from me, and we’ve found this to be something to do together. We can challenge and encourage each other in this area, and your book is a wonderful guide for us.

Thank you, once again, for your obedience in writing this book! God bless you!” -Val, Amazon Review

I love the FlyLady, don't get me wrong, I think she rocks it out for teaching and encouraging women of all ages and situations, but after I don't know how many years now, 6? 7? I'm not sure, I've yet to get airborne for more than a few days. I flap, I flutter.... and I flop, every, single, time. I've read her book, I've started at page one, "shine your sink" so many times, I've lost count. I wake up to a shiny kitchen, and then I lose motivation. And I blame myself, "this works for everyone else??", "I must be doing something wrong", or the humdinger, "It's my fault, I'm a failure, I just CAN'T". The tapes in my head play over and over. "I wrecked my marriage", "I'm fat", "I'm lazy","I'm broken, my health issues prevent me from doing what I can/want". You get the idea I'm sure. Good grief, I've been taught extensively how bad those tapes are but still they play on like a broken record, over and over again.

So, I paid a whopping $2.48 CDN, downloaded the book and I figured out how to read pdf files on my iPhone. I went to bed and started to read my new eBook. I read and read until my body demanded sleep, and then I got up this morning, and I read some more. And then I completed Day 1 and moved to Day 2. And I read some inspirational stories and methods and I figured it out, the reason FlyLady isn't working...

There are plenty of bloggers out there that have jumped on the bandwagon of this particular book. Since I'm not much of one for joining someone else's bandwagon, with God as my pilot, I will co-pilot another wagon right here. Feel free to join me or just follow along. With prayer, hope, grace and loving support of friends & family, I can complete something I start.

I'm hoping by now that I've captured your curiousity and you're sitting there thinking, "What book????" Well, to keep my posts not too longish, I'll share that info with you in my next post ;).... Join me in my journey as I seek to renew my heart, my heart for Jesus, my heart for self, and my heart for my family.

Wishing you a glorious day, filled with grace and joy!

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

True North, Strong and Free!

2011-05-03T09:08:00.004-06:00

As most of my friends could easily tell you I’m not a political person, I don’t follow or even comprehend politics. This is a choice, I research an eclectic array of topics, but I have little interest in politics, it is most definitely not within my realm of knowledge. Besides, it seems to me politics has become more about how to get the other “guy” to look bad instead of trying to make our nation a better place, more about gossip than governing. Because of this lack of political curiosity, this blog posting is an extremely rare public statement for me, if you don’t agree, please don’t roast me ;). Do, however, feel free to share your opinion/feelings, I love to hear what others think, even if we don't agree.

On May 2nd, 2011 Canadians made their voices heard. Perhaps in my political naiveté I believe it’s less about which party so much as a unified nation coming together to say, “we are tired of the crap, let’s quit the quibbling and start leading”. A majority government brings us closer to a united people than we’ve been for a long time, even Quebec stood up and seemed to say, “enough separatism, let’s work together, let’s be a country”. Some people are complaining but seriously, did you really think the NDP would win? Or the Liberals? If they did, where would we be? Back in another minority government with continued backstabbing pugnacious nonsense, not to mention another general election in 2 years… or less. I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of the rubbish in-house fighting, “united we stand, divided we fall”.

Canadians have spoken, we want change, we want action, we want to see our government take care of our country and heed our needs! I just hope Prime Minister Harper understands, this is not a win for the Tories, this is a victory for the people of Canada, this is about a strong country standing together as a nation and saying, “we will not go quietly into the night”. Mr. Harper has four years to prove to Canadians that we didn’t make a mistake, so he better get to work!

I’m not a Tory or a Liberal, nor even a Democrat… I’m green, but I’m not Green, I’m Canadian, and I’m damn proud of it! I want to prove to the world that we truly are, “The True North, strong and free!”.

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

♫♪ God keep our land, glorious and free ♪♫

Day 3!

2011-04-28T16:14:00.001-06:00

Holy Dinah! Has it really been this long since I posted?? Goodness gracious and even a good golly! To be honest with you though, I didn't really feel I had anything interesting to say and I've been feeling the pressure of not writing in another blog that I've made a commitment to. Anyway, whichever, it's not the end of the world, the long cold winter is finally relenting to something resembling spring, I'm ready to shake off the cobwebs and do something productive, anything.

I've talked in the past about the right way to eat and take care of our health, or rather my take on the right way, but I'm afraid I've been great at dishing out the advice, but when it's time to take it myself I smother it with chocolate sauce and whip cream. Technically the advice was for myself, but more often than not I'm just not so great on the follow through. But there comes a point where we hit the proverbial wall. I've hit the fat wall, I'm tired of being fat and tired of being tired and I'm ready to do something about it.

On Tuesday, I walked two miles and on Wednesday I walked two more miles and I did it three minutes faster than the first day. Good start even if I still ate some junk food, it's still four miles of exercise I did that I didn't do the day before, or the week before, or even the month before. Then last night I had this epiphany! I realised something, that nearly every other time I lost weight, I didn't give up a darn thing at first, I just moved more. I started by exercising, as I exercised my metabolism increased, as my metabolism increased I lost weight, as I lost weight my cravings switched from junk food to healthy food and guess what?? You got it, I lost more weight! I've always kind of marched to the beat of my own drummer, it just never occurred to me that the way I lose weight and improve my health could be bass ackwards too ;).

I hope all that clarifies why this is Day 3, and not Day 1. I won't be blogging every day, no need to bore everyone to tears, but I will blog a couple times a week. Today is rest day and I took that a little too literal, having been ridiculously unproductive but here it goes. I'll outline my plan in the next blog posting and if you're interested I'd love to have you join me, the more the merrier and the more people I'm accountable to, including myself and family, the more likely I am to "get 'er done".

How have you been procrastinating getting on the health bandwagon? Do you know what's holding you back? Please feel free to share! I'd love to hear your stories :).

Until next time, I bid you adieu and God bless!

~ Shannon *Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ*

Happy New Year 2011 !!

2010-12-31T23:59:00.030-07:00

To all my wonderful friends and family, I wish you a year of joy, prosperity, peace and that when you look inside you see the firework I see in you.
I love you exactly as you are, wonderful , beautifully and uniquely you!
God's blessings upon you in 2011!!

"The winds of grace are always blowing, all you have to do is set your sails" Ramakrishna
~Shannon.xoxo

Eat Less, Move More.......

2010-12-31T15:12:00.000-07:00

I found a newspaper article years ago (we'll refrain from stating how many) of the same title as this post. It intrigued me and I kept it, unfortunately, it would require a bulldozer currently to unearth it and find the name of the author, so if you're out there, I do give credit where credit is due, just don't know your name presently ;). The article's title was self explanatory, but if memory serves (which it usually doesn't), the writer essentially was making a point about the trend towards fad diets and that losing weight and getting healthier is not that complicated.

I know the arguments too well: "but I'm really overweight so it's too hard", "I don't have the energy/time", "I have medical issues", "but I have a thyroid problem", "I self medicate with food", "it's my meds", "but but but....." and what a big butt it is. I know these arguments, because I have, and can, use them all, and then some. But.... I am my own worst enemy and my own best friend. I choose to let these things control my life, or I choose to control my own life. I can love myself for who I am, and recognise that some areas still need improvement, and that's bloody well just fine. I'm not perfect, I'll never be a size 2 (ewwwww) and I will never grow past 5'4" (more than likely I'll shrink). I am a pretty woman (that one is REALLY hard for me to say), I am a good hearted woman, I am woman, hear me roar... ummm yes, well you get the point. Oh, and I don't do diets... I'm with Garfield on that one, the word diet, is DIE spelled with a 'T'. :P

December 2009, I found myself sticking my head out of a deep lake of despair and taking a deep cleansing breath, realised that I had just spent the last five months wallowing in self hate. I had sunk into a deep depression, as with most in that state, I had no clue. Somehow, and without medication, I pulled myself onto the shore of self-forgiveness, and began the process to clean the residue of depression off (no easy task I tell ya). So now you're wondering, what in the world has any of this got to do with dieting or diets? Don't get your panties in a bunch, I'm about to tell you, but the journey has to start with a first step, and this was my first step.

Here it is, the last day of 2010, and I am realising I need to do something, and do something quick before the lake pulls me back under, and I look over at my fireplace and quietly leaning there, patiently waiting for me to notice it, is my friend, the Wii Fit Balance Board. So I will dust it off, give it new life (fresh batteries), plug everything in, grab the games and bravely climb on for the first time in awhile. I say bravely, because I can assure you, I will NOT be happy with the results. But instead of feeling hopeless and telling myself I can't do it, I will take that body test as a challenge, as if it was trying to say, "I dare you!"

2011 is a new year and a new decade, it's time to not make resolutions that can be broken but lifestyle changes to last, well, for life. So, with some fear of not succeeding, but knowing that I ~~should~~ ~~need~~ WANT to feel better, I WANT to be healthy for myself, for my family, and for my friends, and with the words to the title of that newspaper article echoing in my head, playing over and over, I have begun slowly. One very real fear was the exercise would make my fibro flare as it has in the past, but I will NOT let the fibro define me, I am not FMS, I am me . I started working out a couple days ago, and I feel AWESOME !!! Even with a chinook coming. So I worked out the next day, and I felt even better !!! And tomorrow (need to go shopping) I will eat salad, and skip the junk food aisles at the grocery store.

I'm going to simplify, reduce the clutter in my home, the clutter on my butt and the clutter in my mind. I will enjoy more veggies, fruit and low fat meats, reduce the empty calories I eat, increase time in prayer and self reflection, reduce computer time and increase time with my family.

So here it is.... Eat less, move more.... it works surprisingly well. You really don't need that fancy diet to look and feel good. Just good information on healthy living, the will to succeed, a desire to reach your goals, and to learn to finally love yourself !!! I would love to hear from you, what are you doing to improve your health and sense of self? What are you doing to make yourself fly in 2011?

Happy New Year!!!

~Shannon xoxo

Dear Santa Claus,

2010-12-21T15:07:00.002-07:00

Dear Santa,

I don't like to ask for much. Every year my wish is the same, a happy and safe Christmas for my family and friends, peace on earth, the usual. But this year Santa I'm asking for something for myself, all I want for Christmas is to be pain free.

I would really like to make plans for the next day, and to actually wake up and be able to do them. I'd like to take my kids on activities or go out with my friends, things such as, geocaching, hiking, skiing, and even a movie, and that it won't take a day, or more, to recover. I'd like to actually use the word "promise" when planning something with my boys, knowing I can hold to my word. To sit and play with them on the floor without it being a nightmare of stiffness and pain to get back up after. To go on a simple shopping trip and still cook a meal afterwards rather than having to buy pre-made food for dinner that day because I know, without a doubt, I'll be far too fatigued to do more. I want to hug my boys without fear of the pain it will likely cause. To cuddle with my little ones on the couch while we watch a movie and not be afraid of their little elbows and knees, knowing if they bump me it'll feel like someone has stabbed me with a hot poker. I'd like to have the energy to live in a clean & orderly home again and to give the handmade gifts I love to do.

I know this is a pretty tall order Santa, I really don't like to focus on myself, I love the gift of giving, but it's very hard to give the way I like when I feel like a piece of crap. So just this once I ask for something for myself, to have a "normal" life again. Thanks in advance!

~Shannon

Ps. You will probably need God's assistance with this one :-)

Oh how I love a good book!!

2010-11-29T22:30:00.106-07:00

The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here. Instructions: Copy this into your NOTES or blog. Bold those books you've read in their entirety, italicize the ones you started but didn't finish or read an excerpt. Underlining for saw the movie only. Tag other book nerds. Tag me as well so I can see your responses.

This is another one of those meme things. I haven’t actually participated in a meme in quite some time, but being the lover of reading that I am I couldn’t pass this one up. I actually got it from a friend’s facebook notes, but decided I’d add it to my blog instead. Feel free to use it in whichever way suits you best, or not at all ;-)

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien

3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling

5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

6 The Bible

7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell

9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman

10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens

11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott

12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy

13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller

14 Complete Works of Shakespeare

15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier

16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien

17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulkner

18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger

19 The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger

20 Middlemarch - George Eliot

21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell

22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald

24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy

25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams

27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

28 Grapes Of Wrath - John Steinbeck

29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy

32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens

33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma -Jane Austen

35 Persuasion - Jane Austen

36 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis

37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres

39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

40 Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne

41 Animal Farm - George Orwell

42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving

45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery

47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy

48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood

49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding

50 Atonement - Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel

52 Dune - Frank Herbert

53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons

54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen

55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth

56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens

58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon

60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck

62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov

63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt

64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold

65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas

66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac

67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy

68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding

69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie

70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville

71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens

72 Dracula - Bram Stoker

73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson

75 Ulysses - James Joyce

76 The Inferno - Dante

77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome

78 Germinal - Emile Zola

79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray

80 Possession - AS Byatt

81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker

84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro

85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert

86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry

87 Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White

88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom

89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton

91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery

93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks

94 Watership Down - Richard Adams

95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole

96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute

97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas

98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl

100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

Total read in this list: 51 at least once and 6 started but never finished, so I’m just over halfway there. Although, I think it’s odd they count “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” apart from "The Chronicles of Narnia". If I could count how many times I’ve read some of these over and over again I’d likely hit 100 easily, but I don’t think they count that? There are a couple I may not read at all, but I think I’ll make it my goal to have most of them read by December 12, 2012. You know, because the world will end then… or is just that the Mayans ended so they didn’t get to finish their calendar? At any rate, that’s my goal, to read (or finish reading) the remaining books in the next two years. Feel free to share with me how many you’ve read and which of these are your favourites.

When I started this I just focused on what I'd copy & pasted. Being the me that I am, as my friends can confirm, I'm a bit ~~anal~~ particular and was trying to clean up the html when it came to my attention that #23 & #26 are both missing. Curious, I of course googled the BBC list. I found the original list, aka The Big Read, the wikipedia entry for the list and this blog 100 here. with some easy to read history of where the list came from. The above is not the original list at all, it's definitely been modified but I'll leave it as is for now, but you can see the full

I think I’ll expand on this, by creating my own list of “must reads” that I think should have been included (and which may very well be in the original list but I've only briefly glanced at it so far). However, that’s for another blog post on another day. For now, it’s late, so I am off to the land of nod.

“Only a little more, I have to write, Then I'll give o'er, And bid the world good-night.” Robert Herrick

Frogs and snails And puppy-dogs' tails....

2010-11-25T07:57:00.005-07:00

…That's what little boys are made of. Or so the 19th century nursery rhyme tells us. Personally, the puppy-dog tail thing is a bit disturbing but that's for another day. Besides, after almost literally being trapped inside my very small home with my two youngest boys for 5 days straight, I have my own idea of what little boys are made of.

Little boys are made of, Gas... they're definitely comprised of a whole lotta gas! As any mother of boys can assure you, boys like to, and find it endlessly amusing, to burp and fart. And if they’re not burping or farting, they learn how to mimic it via sticking their hand in the opposite armpit and then squeezing said armpit against the hand. Why the passing of gas is such a huge amusement is beyond me. It is so popular someone, at some point, thought it necessary to make a toy to simulate the sound of passing gas, the whoopee cushion (this may be one of those weird Trivia things I’ll research, but later, I don’t feel like it right now).

They’re also made of dirt, it’s not quite as bad in the winter, but my boys can go from zero to stinky in 28.3 seconds. This is not made up, this is a documented statistic, there was a study, really (ok, not really, but, really). I could scrub my boys down in a hot, boiling bath with a full bottle of Detol and within moments of getting dressed they have managed to get something sticky in their hair (this is why my boys have buzz cuts), under their fingernails is black and the right trouser knee has grass stains on it. (Or something less identifiable but likely far more disgusting). I say only one trouser knee because they have long since blown out the left knee on pretty much every single pair of pants they own.

But here’s the gross bit, little boys are also made up of snot! I think I should get free shares in the Kleenex company, Puffs and you know, that other brand (I'm too ~~sick~~ ~~tired~~ lazy, to go look). Not because the boys use it, so much as I keep buying tissues because I hope they’ll use it. The reason this drives me crazy at this particular moment, is now I’m made up of large amounts of that lovely nasal mucus-y stuff.

It’s been cold here, not like, Canadian cold, but like Antarctica cold, in fact a couple of days ago, the wind chill in the small town I live near was several degrees COLDER than the South Pole. Global Warming, yeah ok, sure. I’ve said it before, if this is Global Warming, I don’t want to be here for Global Cooling. So at -47°c/-53°F we weren’t going anywhere, for five days, a weekend and then three missed days of school, we were stuck in our wee trailer (which feels even smaller now). It gets better, at the same time, Little Man, my youngest darling child, had a bit of a cold. It didn’t really bother him and he went about his play like a trooper, but here is how I know little boys are made of snot. Little Man is very affectionate and he would come running up to me for a hug only for me to realise, too late of course, that he was wearing his snot. Not kidding. Tissues? What are tissues? Isn’t that what sleeves are made for? And my arm? And my face? This kid had glistening lines marching across his left cheek, from the back of his hand and up to his elbows (I'm sure you can guess the logistics of cheek to hand, etc).

Now school is back in (for one entire day), Little Man’s cold is pretty much gone, I have a kid-less weekend on the horizon with some fun activities planned, and I’ve a “code in mah node… all stubbed ub and feeld lahk carp”. And somehow, or maybe it’s just because I hate being sick, or maybe it's the fibro, my cold is worse than his, I definitely do not feel like "playing". I did everything right, I washed my hands, I made him wash his, we were all taking extra vitamin C, echinacea and making sure we drank plenty of fluids, but I’m sick. It seems like ages since I’ve had a cold, but there it goes. Not only that, I seem to have some mild, but irritating issue with my eyes, maybe pink eye but it doesn’t look like it, they just have a bit of a burning sensation and are dryer than a popcorn fart.

So there it is, my take,

What are little boys are made of? Little boys are made of gas and dirt and lots of snot. And they’re more than happy to share.

Best wishes to my American friends, for a happy and safe Thanksgiving Holiday with friends and family. "May your walls know joy; May every room hold laughter and every window open to great possibility". God bless.xo

~Shannon

Once in a blue moon....

2010-11-21T09:04:00.007-07:00

As most that know me have figured out, I'm a bit of a trivia buff, no particular topic, but if something catches my interest I'll research it to death, to the detriment of everything else (ie. feeding my kids, housework, etc). One of my favourite bits of trivia has always been to tell anyone that expresses even the slightest interest what the definition of a "Blue Moon" is. I was, in fact, extremely proud of this knowledge. "Ooooo Shannon, you're so smart to know that". (Ok, that may only be in my own mind where that phrase is ever heard). But......

All this time I've been wrong!! Oh whoa is me that spreads incorrect information, apparently I should have dug deeper. I blindly followed along with popular culture and the "accepted" explanation of a full moon. Turns out most of us were wrong. The following article by Joe Rao on Space.com explains what the original classification of a Blue Moon is and how we ended up believing the "new" one. Considering it's such a popular meaning, it'll likely remain, but as for myself the saying, "once in a blue moon" makes much more sense now!

The Really Strange Story Behind Sunday's Blue Moon

Let me know how you feel about the updated but original definition of a "Blue Moon". Do you have any favourite "trivia" explanations of something? Feel free to share in Smiles & Smirks :)

And have a Happy 2011 Blue Moon!!

November 11th, 2010

2010-11-11T09:28:00.003-07:00

It's been a couple years since I wrote a blog in Remembrance of our fallen and our troops over seas. I'm not sure what was up last year, well I am, but that's not for this post, but I feel like I dropped the ball so I'm back this year to continue to show my support for our men and women that have fought bravely to protect our freedom.

Military has never been a big thing in our family, but we know we owe our freedom to the men and women that protect it. However, my dad served in the Canadian Navy for a short time and both my grandfather's served in WWII. My maternal grandfather was even old enough to be overseas for WWI. Grandpa Hoberg in particular spent 3 years in Europe, away from his family during WWII. My mom was born just before he left and she had no memory of him, when he came home she thought he was a stranger and tried to kick him out of the house! Funny, and yet, sad too.

So today my tribute is not just for the troops, but for the families that have sons & daughters away from home, for those that have lost mother's and father's, for the spouses left alone to care for their children at home. Here's to you that hold the home fort while our brave men and women protect the freedoms of our country and try to help free oppression in other countries. God bless our troops and their families.

Who in your family do you remember or know that bravely kept/keeps the home fires burning for a loved one serving away from the comforts of home?

Mark Schultz, "Letter's From War"

One Blessing at a Time...

2010-11-10T08:41:00.008-07:00

This morning I woke up before my alarm. This isn’t particularly unusual except that it was timed a bit nicer this time, rather than 2 or 3 hours before, it was only about 10 minutes so no great loss and kind of nice to not be jolted awake, even the radio can be a bit unnerving after a crap sleep some nights. I find waking up to a specific time (due to erratic sleep patterns perhaps) extremely difficult, and it doesn’t seem to matter what time that is, so I set my alarm a good half an hour before I actually need to be out of bed so I can let myself wake up a bit more gradually.

My routine is basically this: iPhone harp alarm goes off, I wearily hit snooze and attempt to doze off for a few then radio alarm comes on and I blearily try to listen to the "97 second" news update. By this point I might open my eyes, if I can, I reach for my iPhone and check out fb & twitter. Yes, I’m an addict, my name is Shannon and I’m addicted to social media. There, I said it, but I’ll tell you something else, just seeing others starting their day with cheery (and sometimes not so cheery) messages helps to put me in a better frame of mind to start my day.

Here’s the weird thing about today’s routine, I’m laying on my back, reading tweets and suddenly it occurs to me, I have my ankles crossed, and not only are they crossed, it doesn’t hurt! What? No pain? What is this? A small smile starts to tug at the corners of my mouth. One of the cats jumps up and walks up my belly, across my chest, to give me a nose kiss, still no pain. That smile is growing by leaps and bounds, so I call in the other cat just to be sure and then I start poking myself, maybe I’m dreaming. Nope, I seem to be wide awake. I get out of bed and I feel awesome!

Ok, so what, big deal you say. I tell you what, if you’ve ever had a bad case of influenza remember what the first day felt like after you were better. It’s a big deal, but soon you forget all the aches and pains and life goes on it’s merry way, you take it for granted that, other than an occasional headache or after you bump your knee on the corner of the coffee table for the umpteenth time, you will go about your day pain free. For someone with FMS (Fibroymyalgia Syndrome) amongst other things, pain is a constant companion, those flu like aches and pains are NEVER gone. Imagine this, your cat jumping on your legs while you're laying down is uncomfortable, a hug can leave you breathless and forget your child ever sitting on your lap and cuddling, the pain is so excruciating you feel like someone is pouring a layer of hot lead on your legs.

I just had an odd memory this morning, when I was a child I often woke with “growing pains”, yes, I know that’s not odd, shush for a moment. What I’d forgotten is what I felt like in the morning some days. As far back as I can recall, say the age of 9 or 10, some mornings I would wake up and feel like the Princess and the Pea. Remember that story? With all those mattresses, what was it, like twenty or so, that poor princess could still feel the pea and woke up feeling bruised and battered. I remember relating to this story so significantly that I thought maybe I am a princess and somehow I was switched at birth (not kidding). I know I am no princess (except in my daddy’s eyes, but he’s been gone some time) but that tells me just how far back I’ve lived with pain. In just a couple of months, I'll turn 42 years young, so that is at least 32 years of almost daily pain. I’ve had periods of remission, but I think that’s still pretty significant.

This time it’s been well over four years since I’ve had any reprieve. Last time it was for one blissful day. Pain free is so significant and such a blessing that I can recall the exact feeling even if I can’t recall the exact date. I’d been at a prayer meeting the night before and the pastor and attendees prayed over me. It may once again only last for a day (I was going to add maybe only an hour but it’s already been 3 hours :D ), but even if it lasts one week, or one month, I pray that I NEVER, not for a moment, take this blessing for granted!

So, when I say I woke up today and I am pain free, I can shout for joy and tell you that it is a HUGE deal! “Thank you Abba Father, thank you for this gift, for blessing me with this day. Thank you for giving me the pain too, so I can remember to never take any day for granted!”

“Make a joyful noise unto the Lord” Psalm 100:1

Blessings, ~Shannon

For more understanding of the life of those with chronic pain read Christine Miserandino's "The Spoon Theory" and check out her website, "But You Don't Look Sick"

Casting Crowns, "Praise You With the Dance"

Customer Service is Not a Dead Art

2010-10-06T21:48:00.007-06:00

I was inspired yesterday by a blog, specifically, this blog post. But I wasn't inspired to write a post. I know so why am I writing one then? The post is just the means to share the results of what I did do. What I did was write an email. Intrigued? Yeah, probably not, but there it is, I was inspired to write an email. I have been sitting here trying to determine the best way to share what I wrote, but I think I'll quote the entire email.

When Scott Stratten of Un-Marketing.com posted his most recent experience with some cold food, I realised that being silent about my recent unhappy encounter with customer service was doing a disservice to everyone, not just myself. So I sent this email:

Attention: Manager, The Fairmont Empress

My recent stay at the beautiful Fairmont Empress was regarded with much anticipation. Ever since I was a young girl staring up at the castle like hotel from the harbour I've wanted to stay there. With the recent excellent rate offered to those attending the Social Media Camp at the Victoria Conference Centre, the opportunity arrived for a 30 year old dream to come true. I had no expectations of staying in a suite, I knew I would be in a smaller room and that suited me fine. The room itself was absolutely lovely inside, everything I needed. But I do feel I need to make a couple of comments regarding customer service, one not so positive and one positive.

When I booked my room I explained to the agent that my plane would be landing in Victoria quite early the Friday morning and would really appreciate if it was possible to check in early as I have a disability and it would make things a lot easier for me if I didn't have to haul a bunch of things around until regular check-in time. She was absolutely accommodating, asked what time my flight arrived and accordingly booked a 9:00 AM check-in for me. At the time I was also told I would be getting a room with a view of the city. I was immensely pleased with all this and promptly shared with my friends both verbally and on social media platform how great the customer service is at the Fairmont Empress.

Due to circumstances I didn't actually show up to check-in until shortly after 12:00 PM that day, no big deal except I still didn't have a room to check-in to. I must say I was very disappointed, I was tired from an early flight, sore and needed to rest and the best the desk clerk could offer me was, drop my suitcases with the porter and someone would call me when the room was ready. I didn't receive the call until 3:00 PM, a full 6 hours past when I had booked the early check-in (a time chosen by the booking agent, not me). No accommodations were made for this inconvenience and no suggestions even made as to what a stranger in your fine city could possibly do or any indication how long it would be. When I did finally have a room to check-in to, I found my view to include a brick wall from one window and a back alley from the other. Noise from early morning workers waking me every morning of my stay at 5:00 AM banging for an hour straight of something that sounded like the lid to a dumpster. All of which I likely would not ordinarily comment on if it weren't for that original inconvenience of having to wander the city without any idea how long it would be. I realise things happen beyond the control of the hotel, but perhaps it would be a good idea to help out when you leave a person, particularly a disabled one, without the room they were promised, even if it is just for a few hours.

On that note I do want to commend the porter that showed up at exactly the right moment the day I checked-out. Somehow he happened to be on the 4th floor at 4:50 AM just as I was struggling to get my bags out of my room and head down to catch the Airport Shuttle. He helped me with my bags, we had a lovely chat, he brought me a bottle of water while I waited in the lobby ( I didn't ask for it), and helped me take my bags to the shuttle when it arrived. I didn't catch his name but I really appreciated his help and kindness at such an early hour so please pass on my kudos for such an excellent representative of your organisation.

Kind regards,

So that's it, I hit the send button at 3:05 PM MDT and quite frankly didn't really expect much. By 4:54 PM I had a short reply in my inbox.

Ms. McCann, good afternoon and thank you for sharing your experience while visiting our hotel in Victoria.

We do strive for the highest standards of professional and attentive service for which we are known at Fairmont and I am sorry we fell short on your recent visit. Your feedback was shared with our executive office at the hotel to review and advise.

My reaction, sounds nice, but yeah right, it'll likely get dropped at that point. Was I ever wrong. The phone rang at exactly 8:00 PM, an unknown person from somewhere in BC. It was the hotel's executive manager (or some such important, top brass position). Edward indicated that he was about to send an email to me, but decided a phone call would be more appropriate. Apologising profusely, he felt horrible that I was not entirely satisfied with my stay at The Fairmont Empress. He took all blame on the hotel's part, said they should be prepared for such situations and that it was an excellent learning experience. He then asked me what could they possibly do to make it up to me.

Well, I really didn't know what to say, to be honest I think I was in shock that he was going to this much effort. I explained I really didn't expect anything, just that I thought it best they should have some policy in place if this situation presented itself again. I indicated they were quite lucky my disability is minor compared to some and that if some one was quite disabled it could be a much bigger issue. He still insisted he must do something and suggested a free night at the Empress but I explained I don't travel much and really didn't know when I'd be back. He has an executive meeting coming up where they will make a more considered plan, but said if I had friends in the area he'd be happy to give them one special night in the hotel. Edward then explained that many hotels were under the banner of Fairmont but that they were owned separately and he wasn't sure he could get me a free night, but would do his best with his connections in the Banff area.

I was pleasantly surprised, they really cared that a guest had a disappointing experience and he must make it right. Everyone makes mistakes, it happens, but that he was sincerely upset that my visit wasn't completely satisfying meant the world to me. They could have sent me a placating email with a coupon for an entire weekend free and it wouldn't have meant nearly as much as taking the time to phone with a sincere apology and owning up to a need for a change in policy, to learn from the mistake. Customer service like that is hard to come by and truly shows that some people really do realise they wouldn't have a business if it wasn't for the customers.

So instead of me posting, if you're not rich and famous, this may not be the place to stay, I'm sending a shout out, if you want to be treated with respect, friendliness and caring, The Fairmont Empress is the place to stay when you're in Victoria, British Columbia!

What is your best customer service experience? What is your worst? Feel free to share :)

MAWOY,

~Shannon

Chocolate Loaf Cake, Wherefore Art Thou?

2010-10-04T21:13:00.006-06:00

I'm craving chocolate cake... I know what you're saying, so what? We all do from time to time, but to be quite honest, I'm weird, I don't. I don't generally have a sweet tooth at all, except for certain times during the cycle of the moon when, as we all know, we become a completely different persona, our heads appear to spin like the girl in "The Exorcist" and our family members swear we must have forgotten to wear the tinfoil hat and an alien invasion occurred without their knowledge. *Whew* say that 5 times fast.

But I digress, I want chocolate cake.

I tried eating just dark chocolate, which I always have a supply of, 70% and 85% cocoa, no milk chocolate for this girl (remember, no sweet tooth), "in case of emergency". (It's kept in a glass box with a miniature axe mounted to the outside, really... no, not really, but it's a good idea). Unfortunately my outrageously priced, plain dark chocolate, usually the balm to sooth most cravings, just ain't cuttin' it sista!

I want chocolate cake.

I don't want just any chocolate cake either. What I'm really hankering after is a chocolate loaf. You know the kind don't you? It's dense, and moist, and heavy, and rich, probably has dark chocolate chunks or chocolate chips in it and left to your own devices you would likely eat the entire thing yourself. However, I have two problems, the first one is I'm barely functional after a really awesome weekend that also included a severe lack of sleep. Some days I'm a V8, most days I'm a four cylinder that tries really hard to push past those bigger hills, but tonight... well tonight I don't think I've got enough gas to power a bubble mower!

Oops, I digress again... The second problem is where you come in, I can't find a recipe that seems to jump out at me and say... "Pick me, I'm the one you're looking for". Please, please, PLEASE I would be ever so wonderfully grateful if anyone knows what the heck I'm talking about here and happens to have a delicious, no fail, amazing-to-die-for-melt-in-your-mouth chocolate loaf recipe, please send it to me, or post me a link where I could find it. Because I think that if a chocolate loaf cake does not somehow materialise and find itself consumed by this time tomorrow, I may no longer be responsible for my actions.

Thank you, thank you very much. My family thanks you. So do my cats, the ravaged chocolate bars thank you as well.

MAWOY,

~Shannon

Judged...

2010-08-27T13:43:00.010-06:00

Warning: long post!

I have been catching up with some blog posts by the woman that inspired me to start my own blog, Dawn Meehan. I was shocked and dismayed to find out she’d recently finalised her divorce. It has been so long since I’ve read hers, or anyone’s blog, that I had no idea she even had marital problems, let alone that it had gone that far. As I read her posts and about how she is not just accepting but moving forward, Dawn continues to inspire me by her amazing character and strength as a woman and now a single mom. In searching for more information, I came across this blog post on judging others from 2008 and although I understand the original context in what she wrote is different from my situation, I believe the message is universally applicable.

Let me explain…

Recently I found myself drowning in judgement from a friend I thought would always understand me, a friend I’d always thought of as a sister. After months of silence from her, I wrote an email asking what I had done that she seemed to be so upset with me, upset enough that even when I spent a few days in hospital in April she really didn’t seem to give a crap. The reply I received from her felt like someone had taken a knife and stabbed me in the heart.

Engaging in a short email conversation via fb, I received replies that had accusations that felt judgemental, accusatory and essentially indicative that because I was struggling in my Christian walk and faith (perhaps one day I will feel ready to write about this) that I was no longer “good enough” to be acknowledged. I read her words and found myself feeling that if I “get my shit together” (my words) I will then be acceptable to spend time with??? Did she bother to ask me what was going on? Not at all. Did she take time to learn that I spent a lot of time keeping my mouth shut around her and not sharing some things because I didn’t want to worry or upset her? No, instead I was accused of not thinking of her at all, that I didn’t take time to stop, whilst in my own personal hell, to see how my actions were affecting her life. What??? Other comments in her emails indicated that she had the idea that my faith struggles were based on some whim, that I “decided” God no longer fit my lifestyle so perhaps it was better He didn’t exist. That I traded in God for activities, the internet and men (I’ve dated one guy in the past year, what a ‘ho I am ! And heaven forbid I not spend every spare moment in or near a church or listening to sermons). Not once, to anyone, did I ever say God doesn’t exist. I cannot now, or ever, deny His existence, I’ve seen too much and experienced too much and felt too much to not believe. It wasn’t about not believing, it was far bigger than that but when I tried to explain to the one person I thought would understand I got pushed away and I didn’t hear from her for months until I sent that fateful email a few weeks ago.

Hurt, angry, confused and in tears I retaliated with accusations of hypocrisy and other words that I knew would hurt. Yet I still kept back most of what I really wanted to say as I still had hope that our friendship was salvageable. I tried to start an explanation of why I was in the place I was AND that I was actually working my way out of that black place (with the help of extremely supportive and non-judgemental friends). Her reply indicated that she had no idea I had been struggling (yet I know I had tried to explain months earlier) and left me feeling she was not interested in hearing what I had to say, that all I said in explanation fell on deaf ears. Comments such as “I had to distance myself to protect my faith as you were taking me to a dark place” Huh? Then in complete contradiction of that saying, “had you talked to me about it I would have been there to help”?? Ummm, I TRIED and my email was deleted (apparently on fb now if you delete an email it’s gone from the sender’s box as well) and I didn’t hear from her until I initiated a new conversation months later. After writing an angry and hurt filled email which I never sent, I finally wrote that I saw no point in attempting to explain further or argue my side, as she appeared uninterested, to say the least, in listening to what I had to say. I got no reply to that email, just another deleted conversation. So where do I/we go from here?

I’ve struggled with this question for awhile now as her friendship, her complete understanding of me, the things we shared, meant everything to me, beyond the popular term of bff she was the sister of my heart. The person I thought I knew, the one single individual I thought would tell me anything without fear, and I her, has become a stranger. There were indications over the past couple of years that there were changes I wasn’t crazy about, maybe I changed and it’s not her? But 18 years of friendship are essentially down the drain. She was the one person I could go to and tell ANYTHING to, she knows things about me that very very few people know. It’ll take me time to trust anyone again the way I trusted her after feeling trampled over and abandoned. I was accused of not thinking of her when she has no idea what I was thinking, that I should know better and that my life choices were unacceptable. Essentially I felt that because I am not a perfect Christian, that I have moments where I have struggled in my faith, then I have to “get better” before I’m “good enough” to receive her friendship. This is where I am left feeling, if it was intended or not, this is the message I picked up.

For the most part it’s been a busy summer and I’ve kept this on the backburner. My faith is renewing, I have amazing friends both online and in person that stand by me and I by them. I’ve been spending time in a fun activity that keeps me and the boys off the computer and outside playing. Until I read Dawn’s blog I could keep my hurt hidden, I could avoid deciding how to react, then these words popped out at me from that post…

Matthew 7
1"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.”

"It's easy to judge someone else and decide that they're incompetent when things are going well for you... A look (or word) that says - I understand; I'm sorry you're having a tough time, it’s ok.

I'm telling you, don't judge others. Let your words and actions be a blessing to them.

Even if you think you know all about the other person or the situation, you don't. Not until you've walked a mile in their shoes, can you truly understand.” ~Dawn Meehan

This is EXACTLY how I felt after our fb email conversation. It’s easy to sit in your Ivory Tower, with no financial struggles, no unpredictable disability, confident in the love of your husband and in a “holier than thou” voice point fingers at those that struggle in their day to day life, alone, financially struggling, debilitating disabilities and feeling unloved. I don’t pretend to understand where my “friend” is at in her world, from my side I see something akin to a perfect life and although slightly envious, I’m also very happy for her and proud of her. What I see, and I don’t think she does, is that it’s far easier to keep a strong faith when you’re life is going well, it’s much harder when your life feels like it’s falling apart. I hope, should I ever have the blessings of a much “easier” life, that I never forget the struggles that brought me there and that I never hand out judgements as if I’m better than the person I am pointing at. No matter where I am in life, I am no better or worse than the majority of those I share this world with.

The more I think about things that have been said and actions that have been observed or lack of action, the more I realise we are no longer as similar as we once were. As I look at these things and the differences I see in the two of us that were never there before, the more I realise that the season of this friendship is over. I don’t understand. I have tried, I have struggled, it just doesn’t make sense to me but there it is and I can’t abide intolerance of the frailty of the human condition, physical, mental, spiritual and emotional, none of us are infallible. I am not perfect, I never will be, and as the beautiful Norma Jean Baker once said, “If you can’t handle me at my worst, you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best”. I will stand by my friends through all their trials and triumphs, give praise and hugs when their lives are going great, be a shoulder to cry on and pray for them when times are tough, but I will not put up with being made to feel like I’m unworthy unless I subscribe to anything other than who I am.

“A real friend is someone that knows all about you, but loves you just the same.” ~E. Hubbard

“He who does not understand your silence will probably not understand your words.” ~E. Hubbard

May the Lord Bless You and Keep You…

~Shannon.xo

Best laid plans......

2010-06-08T21:24:00.004-06:00

During a twitter conversation Thursday morning with a friend, I mentioned that things rarely go according to plan so I usually attempt to “go with the flow” in my day-to-day life. As with most important lessons in life, I’ve learned this very one the hard way. Having fibromyalgia (FMS) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) there have been far more occasions than I care to count where I have made plans and promises to do something, and ended up laid out flat; Barely capable of dressing & making my boys pb&j’s for supper, let alone attempting to follow through on plans. Becoming adaptable, and hopefully teaching my children the need to be adaptable, has become something of an art form for me, this past Thursday being another example.

Weather in our area has been less than stellar this spring, with it snowing up to the last weekend in May, many plans have had to either be set aside or permanently squashed. The school track & field day was originally May 28th, then postponed until June r3rd due to said snow, only to wake that morning to dull grey skies, temperatures barely moving into the double digits in Celsius and a light drizzle. Lovely.

They did go ahead with the track meet but as the rain turned to a steady downpour and temperatures dropped I realised that I could not be there in the afternoon to watch as I had assured my children I would. Standing outside in cold, very wet, weather would have left me incapable of doing much for the remainder of the weekend, leaving any further plans I may have in the dust so to speak. I feel terrible, I always do, even though I know I have to make these choices. Sometimes it’s worth the pain and sometimes, quite frankly, it’s just not. I tried to make it up to them, we got takeout from town, picked up the newly released “Alice in Wonderland” blu-ray, some movie junk food and had a nice family movie night. Maybe this weekend, weather permitting, we’ll work our way to the city geocaching and/or a trip to the zoo. It won’t bring back the memories of their last track meet with his school, but it’ll help, hopefully, ease their frustrations with Mum’s limitations.

Aspects of adaptability in the face of FMS:

· Rarely make promises beyond promising to do your best to be there or complete a task.

· Deadlines best be set, at minimum, to double the amount of time it takes others to complete the same project. Then add extra time on top of that.

· Lower your standards. I don’t mean to substandard levels, but perfection is rare at the best of times… for us, expecting such is counter-productive (I think many of us are often perfectionists, so this is easier said than done).

· Go easy on yourself. We may want to be like “normal” people, with “normal” energy levels, but we’re not “normal”… therefore….

· Just do your best!

No matter how much I plan, or decide I want to do, in the next day, next week, next month, or even within the next year, I have to include ~~some~~ ~~a bit~~ a LOT of room for adaptability and that some plans may never come to be. Acceptance, with gumption, is crucial to not just surviving but living a life where pain is our constant companion. Don’t give in, and never give up hope!

MAWOY!!

~Shannon *hugs*

Where's Shannon???

2010-03-02T08:57:00.007-07:00

In all likelihood, no one really cares about this but I need to record it so I can get my head on straight (if that is even possible...lol). So what is Shannon up to these days? What is keeping me so busy that I rarely have time to blog, or at least complete a blog? (Grateful you cannot see my edit list and how many "drafts" are sitting therein.)

In some order resembling importance, but not necessarily in order of actual time spent ;) :

Parenting: Two very active boys of 7 & 9, 'nuff said?
Household: see previous point, attempting some resemblance of keeping order.
School: Attempting to get caught up after a very slow start to my University career
Photography: Always been an interest, a friend recently dumped fuel on the embers and this is growing back into the passion that has been dormant for far too long. (Also, I can't paint, so this is the next best thing ;) )
Internet: I spend far too much time researching and chatting and browsing about what I should be doing. That being said, I've made some pretty great friends and really loving how small the world is via the world wide web.
Writing: Another passion, but one I spend far too little time on.

So that's about it, and yet, it seems to consume my day quite well and finds me quickly at the end of the day wondering, "now what the heck did I do today???" Next, creating a routine to try to fit in as much of each of these as possible as well as some down time. Until next time, May Angels Watch Over You (MAWOY)!

What's keeping you busy these days? I would love to hear from you :)

~Shannon

ps. I think this may win as my shortest blog ever (not counting Wordless Wednesday) ;)

twitter or facebook........

2010-02-24T12:38:00.005-07:00

Once again I'm inspired by another blogger. This one comes from Soshable | Social Media Blog.

Woohoo, another debate. I love a good debate, the tension, the face off, the sweat, oh sorry, that's the hockey game between Canada & Russia tonight at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics ▌♥ ▌ Go Canada Go ▌♥ ▌ (sorry, shameless plug there). There is something about debates though, especially on hot topics, that give me an adrenaline rush and gets the creative juices flowing. I really enjoy ~~pushing~~ ~~extolling~~ sharing my opinions on current, and even not so current, topics of interest. So, without further adieu, I will now climb upon my proverbial soapbox.

Twitter and facebook, currently two of the most well known social media sites on the internet. There are others, as we well know. Facebook whoops MySpace's proverbial butt (yes I know there are still a lot of users on MySpace, but it's not for me), I barely skipped a beat when I switched over and I haven't looked back, I can't even recall when I was last on my own MySpace account. There is LinkedIn, personally, not sure if I know anyone on that and have no idea what it is, and now Google has the new kid on the block, Buzz. I have a total of ONE contact on Buzz so far, and a lovely contact she is. Numbers are one thing, they don't lie, but they can be misleading, personally, when I meet someone knew these days (IRL), if we decide to exchange phone numbers, the next questions are, "do you have facebook?" and then, "do you tweet?". Let's face it folks, it's facebook and twitter that are the real contenders here.

I have only recently really started getting into tweeting, although I've had my twitter account since sometime last year. Currently I sit at 194 tweets, I'm following 60 people/accounts, I have 41 followers (wow!), and 2 of those have me listed (no, not that kind of list, a twitter list. If I ever decide I'm smart enough to have a technical blog, I'll be able to link to my own info. In the meantime, try bitrebels for an explanation.), 12 of my own lists and one list that I follow. I'm sure I could make an equation out of all that, not really my gig anymore though. What it does equal though is, comparatively speaking, I am still most definitely a newbie in the twitter world.

Facebook is another story altogether, I have 356 friends (sort of middle of the road there, and I'm good with that), far too many applications, which need to be culled, and several "fan" pages. I have been on facebook for, well, ummmm, awhile, 4 or 5 years? Point is, I am definitely NOT a facebook newbie.

So what does all this mean in view of the social network debate? In my world, comparing the two is rather an apples and oranges question. They are different in their own, and very ~~distracting~~ ~~time-hogging~~ useful ways. For me, they complement each other. Facebook is truly social media, it is about friendships, networking, and even dating. Over the past few years I have reconnected with some very wonderful old friends from my past. I'm not in the, "we lost touch for a reason" camp, I truly love getting to know the adult versions of my school buddies and family members. I also find it a wonderful way to keep up to date with those on my friend list, I am a people person, I like to know what's going on in your life; I'm curious because I care. I don't, however, play games on fb anymore, I rarely engage in sharing of apps, but that is something else you will find there that is not on twitter, and I'm glad it's not on twitter. Facebook is my apple, it's shiny, dense and has lots of fibre.

Twitter is my orange. I like both apples and oranges, but somehow I always feel like I'm getting more nutrition from an orange, I'm sure they are equal in their own rights, that's just my perception. For the most part I follow photographers, writers, bloggers, geeks and a few musicians. From their tweets, I am learning a plethora of information on my favourite and most passionate areas of interest. And all those areas roll up nice and neatly into my biggest passion, education (my vitamin c). I love to learn, if I don't understand or know something I look it up, if I feel like I am not getting the answer I want, I research and dig deeper. My tweeters (is that the right term? like I said, newbie), are quite often, doing a lot of the legwork for me and I am absorbing the most amazing information, from up & coming tech gadgets, to photo technics, to how to get blog traffic, to word of the day for my writing. Twitter has become my place to get information, to be informed, and to inform (well, still getting to that stage).

The long and short of it is, for my personal choice, I pick both. I can't pick one over the other. They each serve their purpose in my world. My ever expanding, right from my own living room, world. It's a good world, despite living in the middle of nowhere, I still feel connected.

Many people will walk in and out of your life,
But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Journaling: Handwritten in a book or Blog it.....

2010-02-22T15:12:00.000-07:00

So here's my dilemma, I want to blog more, I have 4 blogs that rarely get entries these days. More importantly though, I really need to stop procrastinating my school work so that has to be TOP priority for me right now.

ROFL.... my kitten is sleeping on his back on the back of the couch (no that's not redundancy, that's what he's doing and where he is, really really). He's quite obviously dreaming, perhaps he is chasing the mouse he didn't catch (but I did :P) and his back feet are twitching. His toes are actually going to the beat of the current song (something by the Corrs) so it looks like he's tapping his toes to the tune. Darn it no video on my dSLR, but here's a cute picture of him snoozing.

Ok, ummmmm, gee, they say I have ADHD, they really don't understan.... oh look, a kitty dancing :P.

Anyway, as I was saying, ummmm oh yeah, school has to be my priority. Next assignment, start a writer's journal. Herein lies my dilemma, the suggested format is to get a blank notebook that suits you; It should be durable, portable, yet large enough to allow fluid writing. ~~Ok, I love journals,~~ scratch that, I love nearly all stationery, I'm a collector of stationery, I have more stationery than Staples spread around this place. Think I can find a journal here that I "feel" is suitable? Not likely, I'm funny that way, I could have 10 examples of what I need, but none are what I "want", they are not suitable to the purpose I have in mind.

That's not really my dilemma though, I need to go shopping really really soon anyway (like yesterday). The issue I'm working on is that I want to blog more but as I turn my focus to obtaining my degree I will continue to have little blog time. I wouldn't mind blogging my writer's journal, but a) it is supposed to be private and b) it is supposed to be portable. In considering these requirements, a) my public blogs won't work then. I can, set the entries to private, so that's an easy fix. B) My preferred location of entry is my desktop computer with the 24" monitor, not particularly portable. My HP Tablet is far more portable (not fit in my purse portable, but if I can haul around a dSLR all the time, what's one more backpack), but currently the wireless card is fubar so I can't post until I get home. Considering I spend 90% of my time at home, that doesn't sound very hard to do either. Seriously though, if you know me, once I want something, I have very little patience to wait for it. Nope, no ADHD here ;).

Having written all this out now I think I answered my own question, which is often the point of writing and/or sharing, particularly when faced with a conundrum. I'll purchase a new journal for the job. I really think that, although I'm not out & about often, grabbing a book to write in, rather than hauling out even a small laptop, is far less complicated. Having said that, if you have an opinion, feel free to share, I'm always open to new ideas ;).

Be prepared... winter driving....

2010-01-14T09:08:00.004-07:00

Be Prepared. This is a good motto that the Boy Scouts use and it has served them, and many others, well over the years. This would be a good motto for the fellow (and many other dimwitted dwellers of snowy regions) that arrived at my doorstep after I’d just crawled into bed Monday evening.

It wasn’t that late, not much past 10:00 PM, but I was tired after a crappy sleep the night before. Winding down for the night, I was sitting on my bed setting my new clock alarm when, Bailey, my neighbour’s dog, went berserk. Honestly, at first I didn’t pay much attention, she is, well, she’s sweet and as I am the one that feeds her (another story) she has kind of adopted us, but she barks at anything and everything. Birds, leaves fluttering, a reflection of light (this is quite amusing actually, gotta video her one of these days), so quite frankly, her barking doesn’t raise too many alarms, generally. When she continued, was very loud and aggressive sounding and did not stop without a break, I started to think something was up. Then my spidey senses startled tingling (really, only, I’ve never been bitten by a radioactive spider, at least not that I’m aware of).

I realised something was definitely up. Usually, she only goes crazy if a coyote is trying to get on the property, or a stranger drives up. I did not hear a vehicle so I just assumed it must be a coyote, until… someone knocked on my door. Living in the middle of nowhere almost generally affords the comfort level that if anyone is in this area, it is because they have to be, not because they are out for a random killing spree, so I usually feel pretty secure in my wee home. (I mean really, this IS Canada). Still, I wasn’t sure if I should open the door or not that night, I heard no vehicle come into the yard, I was tired, ergo more sensitive than usual, and not feeling particularly “neighbourly” at strangers on my doorstep.

But being the good citizen and worried it was a stranded traveller, I opened my door a crack to see what manner of person dared come knocking on a home that was obviously shut down for the night (only light on when he knocked was my bedside light). It didn’t occur to me until just now, that he likely saw that the lights were being shut off one by one in a row as I had only just gone to bed. Anyway, I digress. I opened the door, and the only creature on my deck was Bailey… wth? I know I heard a knock, then just beyond the deck I saw this fellow looking lost and quite nervous of that big black dog barking her head off. Now, I wear pj’s to bed, nice warm flannel ones, but I wasn’t terribly interested in showing at the door like that so I threw a hoodie on over top at least, so I assume the delay had caused him to think that no one was going to answer (not to mention the big black dog barking at him).

Apparently, this fellow, for whatever reason, felt a need to pullover whilst driving in the dark on a country road, thought he saw an approach and pulled in, realising, far too late obviously, that he had in fact pulled straight into a ditch. In the summer, no big deal, winter, in a car, not a good thing. Not just any winter either, this year, we have already had unbelievably copious amounts of snow. My deck was three feet deep, the ditches, deep ones, filled until they looked nearly flat, and the snow drifts in our yards against buildings and tree lines were six feet high. And if that’s not enough of a challenge for a fellow, obviously from the city in his wee car, it was melting at an unbelievably fast rate and everything was incredibly slick.

I could see the flashing lights from his vehicle, just under a mile up the road, so obviously most likely true, and he was asking if someone was available to help him push it out. Now, I live alone and have small children. I do share the acreage with the property owner’s grandson living in his own trailer just behind mine, he’s a good, big farm boy, but was away in the oil fields for his winter job at the time. Needless to say, it was not even remotely possible for me to leave my home, and therefore, not much help to a motorist in need. Honestly folks, I took a good look at this fellow, and he wasn’t much help to himself either I’m sure. Dressed right off the pages of a magazine, he had on his fancy shiny leather shoes, nice cuffed trousers and his leather ¾ length jacket. (I walk my boys to the bus each morning down our rather long driveway, next morning I realised it was sheer ice, I have no idea how that man managed to walk it and stay upright in those shoes). This was a fellow, who’s motto is most decidedly NOT, Be Prepared! He says to me, “I have a shovel”. Great! But now you’re pretty gucci’s are filled with snow dear. (I didn’t say that out loud, I’m much to polite lol). So he has a shovel, but is driving in the dead of winter, with only office wear and pretty shoes, I hope they’re durable.

In the end, best I could offer him was what was left of a box of clean litter for some traction. I tried phoning down to the farm, but he was not home either. I drove by the next morning, and saw where he had been stuck (my 4x4 would have been fine ;) ), and obviously, somehow gotten free. I have no idea if it was with the assistance of the litter, a passing motorist, or if he had to call a tow truck, but he made it out and presumably home safely (or whatever his destination).

Moral of the story: If you live in a climate where snowy weather is a factor, Be Prepared! In the winter, carry the following supplies with you in your trunk or cargo space at all times:

Roadside Assistance membership
Winter boots (or something that keeps snow out, your feet warm & dry and has a decent grip)
Warm toque (hat), gloves & scarf
Shovel (he had that at least)
A small box of cat litter or sand (great for traction)
Vehicle safety kit

ice scraper
snow brush
sand, salt or kitty litter
booster cables
flashlight
blanket
reflective warning sign or road flares
extra clothing
emergency food supplies
matches
candle in a deep tin
fire extinguisher
paper towels or rags
First-aid kit
compass
road map

Day 9 at Wii Fitting!

2009-12-20T10:53:00.003-07:00

(This is yesterday's information and posted first on wiifitroutine.com).

Burned: 2,239 cal (according to this )

Time: 9 hours

New Activities Tried: See below

higgledy-piggledy

-adverb

1.	in a jumbled, confused, or disorderly manner; helter-skelter.

This is the way my brain feels today and I know why, too much crap (can I say crap) going in and not enough going out. In other words, I ate horribly yesterday and not near enough water intake. The boys & I went Christmas and grocery shopping, breakfast was ok, one slice of toast with peanut butter, a cup of that lemon detox I linked to previously, and a cup of tea, then an apple enroute to the store (remind me next year that Walmart on a Saturday is bad enough, but the Saturday before Christmas is just stoooopid).

We left just before 11 AM and didn't get home until nearly 8 PM. (Any decent shopping is at least a 45 km(27 mi) drive and this city is 65 km(39 mi) away). We started at McDonald's, actually I grabbed a large double double coffee at Timmies first, and at McD's I only ordered a burger (double cheese), no fries. Then we shopped, and shopped, and shopped and finally left there at oh 2:30ish, hit Dollarama for another hour, got petrol and hit Superstore until 6:30ish. (Oh, I encouraged someone to purchase Wii Fit Plus at Walmart as a gift for her daughter-in-law :D). At Superstore my youngest (7 yo) decided to wander off and I had to get the store to call a "Code Adam" (can I count a panic attack as calories burned??). I'm so glad these big stores keep people at the exits at all times, he was discovered in less than 5 minutes but it felt like hours. I was so freaked out and in tears by the time he walked up with a store employee.

I was tired, stressed and just plain wiped out when we left Superstore, my feet and legs were burning we'd walked so much, at that point I decided I had earned a Starbucks coffee. Went to park at the new Starbucks and saw a Little Ceasars in the same strip, yay, supper! On the trip home, I drank half my coffee and ate 2 crazy bread and as if the shopping wasn't crazy enough, when we hit the highway the fog was insanely thick, what is usually a 35 minute drive home took over an hour. At times I was down to 40 km/hr (24 mi/hr) on a highway that has a limit of 100(60). The fog was freezing on the windshield, I had heat on full and had to keep spraying the window. Then right beside my place, someone missed the stop sign in the fog and got their wee car lodged up on a snow bank across the road. Once we were safely home I ate 1 ½ pieces of pizza and all 8 chicken wings :S. I got the kids tucked in bed, and realised I really really needed a drink (I don't drink very often) so had myself a JD's and coke and despite all the caffeine I slept like a baby LOL!

According to Health Status.com, I burned 2,239 calories approximately, I think that's conservative, between panic attacks with a missing child, stress shopping, and white knuckle drive home, I'm sure I burned more. But then I'm sure I consumed more than that too LOL.

Happy Fitting !! 8)

Calories Burned Estimation:

Results:
According to the information you provided, below is an estimate of the calories you burn. Generally, to maintain your weight, the amount of calories you take in should equal the amount you burn. The Daily Energy Expenditure calculator will help you figure out the minimum number of calories your body needs each day to work properly. To lose one U.S. pound (.454 kg), you must burn 3,500 more calories than you take in as food.

Activity	Calories burned
Sitting / resting	88
Standing	99
Housework	122
Driving	266
Shopping	499
Walking 2 mph	1,165
Total Calories Burned	2,239

Remembrance Day 2009

2009-11-11T11:00:00.006-07:00

On Monday, November 11th, 1918, the Allies and Germany signed an armistice agreement in Paris, France at 5:00 AM (Paris time). At 11:00 AM hostilities ceased and WWI was over. On November 6th, 1919, Sir George Foster, acting Prime Minister of Canada, rose in the House of Commons to read a message from King George V, addressing "all the peoples of the Empire":

Tuesday next, November 11th, is the first anniversary of the armistice which stayed the world-wide carnage of the four preceding years, and marked the victory of right and freedom. I believe that my people in every part of the Empire fervently wish to perpetuate the memory of that great deliverance and of those who laid down their lives to achieve it.
To afford an opportunity for the universal expression of this feeling it is my desire and hope that at the hour when the armistice came into force, the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, there may be for the brief space of two minutes a complete suspension of all our normal activities. During that time, except in the rare cases where this might be impractical, all work, all sound and all locomotion should cease, so that in perfect stillness the thoughts of every one may be concentrated on reverent remembrance of the glorious dead.

We are 91 years since the end of the "War to end all wars", 20 years (plus two days) since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Lots to remember this year.

Remembrance Day has a lot of meaning for me. As a child it was an important part of our school activities. We drew or coloured pictures, we memorised, "In Flander's Fields", sometimes we had a field trip before the day at a war museum or special memorial, we had a service/assembly, and a moment of silence at 1100 hours. The assemblies continue at schools today, although there seems to be less emphasis to commemorate and teach about the importance of this day. It is now a general holiday in Alberta so we will take a moment of silence at home.

Today I will also take time to remember three special people from my life. My daddy, Andrew Ian McCann, who passed away on Easter Sunday 1996, My step-dad, Ivan Michael Zaitsoff, who passed away October 5th, 2008, and a beloved high school teacher, Phil McKay, who passed away yesterday of pancreatic cancer. Rest in peace, each of you have had a bigger impact on my life that you will ever know. To Mr. McKay's family I send my prayers and thoughts.

Green Day ~ 21 Guns

Songwriters: Armstrong, Billie Joe; Bowie, David; Pritchard, Michael; Wright, Frank E., Iii

Do you know what's worth fighting for?
When it's not worth dying for?
Does it take your breath away
And you feel yourself suffocating?

Does the pain weigh out the pride?
And you look for a place to hide?
Did someone break your heart inside?
You're in ruins

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky, you and I

When you're at the end of the road
And you lost all sense of control
And your thoughts have taken their toll
When your mind breaks the spirit of your soul

Your faith walks on broken glass
And the hangover doesn't pass
Nothing's ever built to last
You're in ruins

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky, you and I

Did you try to live on your own
When you burned down the house and home?
Did you stand too close to the fire
Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone?

When it's time to live and let die
And you can't get another try
Something inside this heart has died
You're in ruins

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky, you and I

BlogBlast for Peace

2009-11-05T09:05:00.003-07:00

Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.
Let there b

e peace on earth
The peace that was meant to be.
With God as our father
Brothers all a

re we.
Let me walk with my brotherIn perfect harmony.

Let peace begin with me
Let this be th

e moment now.
With every step i take
Let this be

my solemn vow.
To take each moment
And live each moment
With peace e

ternally.
Let ther be peace on earth,
And let it be

gin with me.

Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.
Let there be p

eace on earth
The peace that was meant to

be.
With god as our father
Brothers all are we.
Let me walk with my

brother
In perfect harmony.

Let peace begin with me
Let this be the moment

now.
With every step I take
Let this be my solemn vow.To take each moment
And live each momentIn peace eternally.
Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with

me.

The Official Site of BlogBlast For Peace

The Flu Vaccine Debate….

2009-10-30T10:15:00.009-06:00

I’m asserting my opinion on this debate, this is NOT a medical opinion, I am not a professional. Please do your own research, weigh the pros and cons for you and your family and talk to your physician. Also, if you have a different opinion, good for you, I will never push my beliefs on another. I merely share what I feel is best for my family. Do what is best for YOUR family! ps. this is long, have a cup of coffee near by if you dare to read LOL.

Regarding both the seasonal influenza vaccine and H1N1 influenza (swine flu) vaccine and based on my own research, myself and my younger children will NOT be getting either vaccine.

I have been favouring the “do NOT” side for some time but still teetered on the edge of the fence. The media hype regarding the spread of this flu and the government insistence that this is necessary was at war within me against all I believed in about the danger of ALL vaccines. Hearing the reports of reactions (from mild to severe and even death) related to the H1N1 vaccine and the seasonal flu vaccine, had me concerned and weighing the risks of vaccine over contracting either virus. In fact, fear mongering has the exact opposite reaction for me, I distrust those that would use fear to push their agendas and that in and of itself was pushing me on the no vaccine side of the fence. Based on experience and research this is how I came about my final decision. Although my decision is for both vaccines, I am focusing on H1N1 here as that is the hot topic right now and the vaccine they are pushing.

First of all, as I said, using fear tactics caused me to DISTRUST those pushing the vaccine, the opposite effect they intended obviously. This pushed me to do research on my own (a good thing) and look closer at the assertions, but not pushiness, of those against the vaccine.

Secondly, lack of sufficient testing of the swine flu vaccine. This vaccine was proven to cause a myriad of severe reactions in the past and yet is once again being pushed, with the “new & improved” brand. But they have no proof of the improvements and the adjuvants are just as dangerous as always. I already know I react to thimeresol, would you believe they used to put it in contact solution… c’mon everybody, let’s pour mercury in our eyes WTH??

Nearly there on my decision, I then discussed the H1N1 vaccine with my bff. Her husband is a doctor of chiropractic medicine, I trust chiropractors before MD’s. They are not getting the vaccine, reason: too little testing, too risky, too many adverse reactions. That solidified how I feel. However with the virus spreading quickly through our small school concerns continued to nag at me, hummmm what’s a mom to do?

I am a single mom with several medical issues, the worst of which is fibromyalgia & CFS, I have no one to back me up if I’m sick, no matter what the cause. So now you may be thinking, well don’t you want the vaccine then??? No thanks, I had the seasonal flu vaccine a few years ago, I didn’t know why at the time, but I was sick, weak, fatigued and in pain for weeks after, most of the winter in fact, but oh goody, I didn’t get the flu! Two weeks ago I caught what I assume was the seasonal flu virus (not sure, but I don’t think it was swine flu). On the first day I was headachey, body aches, high fever, nauseated (without vomiting), muscle weakness and couldn’t walk to the bathroom without holding onto walls & counters. I was FULLY recovered in four days! No residual effects, no sudden return after getting better. My 8 yo also had seasonal flu (again not positive) about four weeks ago, same thing, FULLY recovered in less than four days. I think we’re doing pretty darn good at building up our immune system.

Today I learned that both vaccines can cause severe and lasting debilitating reactions to those with fibromyalgia, CFS or any of the chronic pain syndromes. Well, that explains my previous winter, apres vaccination. I’ll be darned if I can afford to be nearly bed ridden again for an entire winter. I have attached a video from youtube.com, a physician specialising in infectious disease AND an endocrinologist, Dr. Kent Holtorf is NOT getting his children immunized with H1N1 and indicates that it has been shown to be “devastating” to those with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia. So based on my research, we’ll take our chances with no vaccinations and continue to keep our immune system fortified with healthy eating and daily vitamins.

Best of luck to everyone in making your decision and prayers for staying healthy. God bless!

Life on the farm…. (cont’d)

2009-10-22T09:38:00.003-06:00

Yesterday we woke to our world softened by a rather dense fog. Before daylight I couldn’t see past the edge of my deck. As I listened to the morning news the school board was even cancelling some school bus routes it was that thick. By 8 AM I could still could not see the road at the end of our driveway. The first photo is from my front door. I am including a shot of my view from this exact same location on a clear day so you can understand the extreme contrast. (And yes, I know I used a zoom lense in the 2nd picture lol).

After that I decided to venture out to our yard with my camera to see what I could come up with. These are my favourites. Comments, commendations and recommendations are welcome and encouraged on my photography always! I am no professional by any stretch of the definition but I really love playing with my camera.

Blessing of the Fishing Fleet: October 4th Holidays & Observances

2009-10-04T11:03:00.017-06:00

I am going to attempt to make Sundays the day that I search the world wide web to find holidays & observance for the coming week and share them with my readers. I will list a few that sound interesting, give some links for more and then focus on one that catches my eye. I hope to learn more about the world cultures and to remind us all how each and everyday is special.

For the 4th of October 2009 I am picking “Blessing of the Fishing Fleet.”

The Blessing of the Fleet is held at coastal fishing communities throughout much of the world. I have only found two sites that label October 4th specifically as Blessing of the Fishing Fleet, but I feel it is important to remember these hard working people. Each day, thousands of fishermen, worldwide, get in their fishing vessels and head out to help feed the many. Risking life and limb, they do what they love to provide us with the seafood so many of us enjoy. Each year, many fishermen, end up severely injured or losing their lives. So today, and everyday, I send my prayers out to each and every vessel, for a bountiful catch and to bring them all home safely to their families.

Psalm 104:25-27

Psalm 107:23-32

“Most gracious Lord, who numbered among your apostles the fishermen Peter, Andrew, James and John, we pray you to consecrate this boat to righteous work in your name. Guide the captain at her helm. So prosper her voyages that an honest living may be made. Watch over her passengers and crew and bring them to a safe return. And the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be upon this vessel and all who come aboard, this day and forever. Amen”

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”

Links for October 4th:

Count Your Blessings…..

2009-10-02T09:52:00.004-06:00

Yesterday, as I was heading out for an afternoon & evening of errands I was ~~whining~~ ~~complaining~~ commenting about how much I dislike shopping. The rude people, the lack of stock, how I can never quite find what I’m looking for, and the shock of how much it all costs when you hit the register. But I stopped and a picture similar to these came into my head.

And I thought to myself, who am I to complain? I live in one of the greatest countries in the world. I know we have poor and homeless, I know there are issues, I know it’s not perfect here. We do not however, have widespread famine, we do not have political unrest to the degree they do in third world countries, we do not have war literally at our doorstep. Most people in Canada have a decent roof over their head, a vehicle of some sort (not all, but most), and we have medical care for everyone, we complain about that care, but we have it. To my knowledge, no one is denied, at the very least, emergency care. I could be wrong, but I don’t think so.

My personal blessings:

I have my family well protected in a nice home, one that I own, no mortgage. We have comfortable, warm beds to sleep in at night. I have a motor vehicle to get myself and my family around. Not just any vehicle, I have my dream truck that is in great shape. I don’t have much money, but I have enough to feed my family, rent space for our home in the country, go to school, pay the bills, & have nearly all the modern conveniences we could wish for. I have a mother that, when money is tight for me, is able to help me out, and I will forever be in her debt AND eternally grateful. Even my church and friends have been there to help us out in a pinch. Life is good… no, life is great.

So, while I still really dislike shopping, it’s just not fun for me. I will do my best to remember, do not complain about it. Because it is a privilege to have the freedom and a blessing to have the means.

I may live in a bubble, rarely watching, reading, or listening to the news. But I know how blessed we truly are.

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious onto you; the Lord lift His countenance upon you and give you peace. ~Numbers 6: 24 - 26

Ok, ok already.... I'm back....

2009-08-23T18:28:00.003-06:00

Alright, I know, I keep getting harassed about not writing, since... well forever it seems like.... but I'm here and I'll get right on it if ya'll stop raggin' on me.... LoL! Kidding, I love you all to bits and I appreciate you care enough to get on me about my lack of blogging... xox.

Going to start with introducing you to the newest addition to my blogging adventures... Hard Way In, Easy Way Out ! The adventures (or misadventures) of my boys and I as we geocache our way around the county, country, world !

Things I've done since my last blog (a photo essay).......

Met someone related to Evel Knievel (seriously lol).…..

Went dancing with good friends.….

Drove a tridem highway tractor pulling a 3 axle oil tanker (that's 27 wheeler in laymans terms.lol).....

Found out I'm going to be a grandma !!! ~:D.....

Met a great bunch of people, also related to Evel Knievel ……

Played on the skidoo lots ~:D.....

Learned the names of, and visited, several Alberta towns I never knew existed.….

Moved away from my acreage, to a small town in East Central Alberta.….

Played with my new camera lots (more to come with that of course)…..
Visited Edmonton for Mother’s Day…

Taking the boys to West Edmonton Mall, Getting my eyebrow pierced and visiting my sweet, wonderful Grandmother.….

Visited friends and went fishing in Beaver Lake, then did some aerial photography of the area……

Met with some great friends that I’ve known online for 4 years now…..

While in BC, we went canoeing in the Columbia Wetlands…..

Went on an early morning trail ride…..

And were introduced to geocaching in the lovely town of Radium Hot Springs…..

Moved back home, where I belong.….

Not an exhaustive list by any means, but these are the highlights of what was keeping me buys….. that and just being bit by the procrastination bug again….

I really hope to be on here more, making my blogs part of my university education.

MAWOY !!!

Because I currently have nothing better to do...

2008-11-28T18:16:00.010-07:00

Or rather because I don't feel well enough to do anything better than this... Stolen from a friend on Facebook... another pointless meme so you can learn more useless trivia about me...

1. The phone rings, who do you want it to be?
Hmmm... no one in particular really, if you want to chat call me, I don't bite..... hard :)...

2. When shopping at the grocery store, do you return your cart?
Yes, actually I do, because I do not want to be hypocritical... When you already have to park far from the entrance because your vehicle actually does need to occupy two spaces, I don't want to have to go further because some idiot was too lazy to walk 2 parking stalls further to put it away in the cart corral... morons... (this would be a pet peeve, bet you couldn't tell)...

3. If you had to kiss the last person you kissed again, would you?
most definitely... it was my boys seeing them off for a weekend at dad's... now if you mean in the sense of "boy meets girl"... well yes for that too ;)...

4. Do you take compliments well?
Not really no, I like them, but I don't take them well because I often don't believe them...

5. Do you play Sudoku?
Nope... it hurts my brain to have to think that hard...

6. If abandoned alone in the wilderness would you survive?
Perhaps, technically speaking I should be able to... trained and all that... but one never knows and I would rather not have to test it...

7. If your house were on fire, what would be the first thing you would save?
In order: Kids, kittens, laptops, photos...

8. Who was the last person you slept in a bed with?
myob !!!... LOL =D...

9. Who do you text the most?
Currently, friend I recently met...

10. Favorite children’s book?
Velveteen Rabbit, Chronicles of Narnia...

11. Eye color?
Clear green...

12. How tall are you?
5' 4 1/2... exactly one foot shorter than the personage I pillaged this from...

13. If you could do it over again, start from scratch, would you?
Some days, yes... overall, no...

14. Any secret admirers?
How the heck would I know if it's a secret?!?!? You tell me...

15. When was the last time you were at Olive Garden?
Ummm... no clue, been ages... what is this, a shameless commercial plug???

16. Favorite ex?
If they are an ex... there is usually a reason for that... well there is one that is still a friend... but he doesn't count for reasons I won't iterate here...

17. Where was the furthest place you traveled?
(people that create these things should learn to spell first... )
I think London, England is the furthest I've been... Australia is the furthest I'd like to go...

18. Do you like mustard?
Not particularly... no... and now that I've learned this... it was used by the Romans to cover the taste of rotting meat... even less so...

19. Do you prefer to sleep or eat?
odd combination of choices... as we need both for survival... choosing for what is over and above what is required for basic survival, and based on current waistline, would seem it is currently eat...

21. Do you miss anyone?
Yes...

22. Can you do splits?
no comment...

23. What movie do you want to see right now?
I don't really know all there is offered out there right now, but I am going to see "Twilight" tomorrow night...

24. What did you do for New Year’s Eve?
Which year?... I brought in 2008 at a gathering at a friend's home with an old high school buddy in tow...

25. Do you think The Grudge was crappy?
No clue...

26. Do you own a camera phone?
three camera phones actually...

27. Was your mom a cheerleader?
Not that I'm aware of...

28. What’s the last letter of your middle name?
N... which happens to be the last letter of my first name and last name as well...

31. Do you like care bears?
sure... even have a t-shirt with lucky bear on it...

32. What do you buy at the movies?
wine gums, or if not avail, licorice... and popcorn...

33. Do you know how to play poker?
I would need a refresher and I prefer to play with rumoli... but yes...

34. Do you wear your seatbelt?
Yes...

35. What do you wear to sleep?
whatever the situation warrants... when, where & who are factors needed to determine the answer...

36. Anything big ever happen in your city?
not really, no...

37. Is your hair straight or curly?
Straight...

38. Is your tongue pierced?
No...

39. Do you like Liver and Onions?
Yes... if cooked correctly...

40. Do you like funny or serious people better?
Seriously funny...

41. Ever been to L.A.?
three times...

42. Who is on your mind right now?
my boys, Alan, Lorrie, Kip...

43. Any plans for tonight?
rest and get better so I can go out tomorrow with..... =D well you know who you are...

44. Whats your favorite song at the moment?
that would be a list as I'd have to choose from each genre I listen to...

45. Do you hate chocolate?
No, who hates chocolate?!?

46. What do you and your parents fight about the most?
as I really only have my mom left, well if she was fighting with herself I would likely have to suggest serious intervention of a psychiatric kind...

47. Are you a gullible person?
only when it comes to love...

48. Do you need a boyfriend/girlfriend to be happy?
no, I'm not that pathetic...

49. If you could have any job what would it be?
writer/photographer...

50. Are you easy to get along with?
Sometimes, well most of the time... others, particularly when I first wake up in the morning, it is best to just stay away until a decaffeinated beverage is consumed...

51. What is your favorite time of day?
Late Evening...

52. Are you generally a happy person?
Yes, I do my best...

---

1. Real name: Dakota Zipporah Dayberry... aka Shannon, but then most of you knew that already...
2. Like it? well, golly, 'course I do hun...
3. Single or taken? Single...
4. Zodiac sign: Chinese: Monkey/cusp with Rooster; Greek: water bearer; Celtic: The Rowan...
5. Male or female: la femme...
6. Elementary: Several...
7. Middle: McKernan/Robert Warren...
8. High School: Fr. Patrick Mercredi Community High School...
9. College: attended Keyano... attending Athabasca University...
10. Hair colour: auburn from a bottle =D...
11. Eye colour: clear green...
12. Hair length: medium long...
13. Current worry: boys having trouble at school...
14. Race: irish/scottish & human, although some days don't even want to admit that...
15. Are you a health freak? to a degree...
16. Height: 5'4 1/2...
17. Do you have a crush on someone?
Of course, I wouldn't be much of a hopeless romantic without some sort of unrequited love (I stole this from the previous author of these questions as I liked it)
18. Do you like yourself? definitely...
19. Piercings: ears and nose...
20. Tattoos: One... want more...
21. Dexter or sinister: Dexter...

FIRSTS-
22. First surgery: laparoscopy...
23. First piercing: when I was little, ears...
24. First best friend: Debbie Trudeau...
25. First award: baking a cake in junior high...
26. First sport: sprinter...
27. First pet: cat named Snoball...
28. First vacation: not counting the numerous camping trips as a kid, probably Disneyland when I was 9...
29. First teacher: Mrs. Beaty... I think... that's a long dang time ago...
30. First crush: Tommy...

THIS OR THAT-
31. Orange or apple juice: Orange...
32. Rock or rap: Rock...
33. Country or emo: Country...
34. NSYNC or Backstreet Boys: gag me with a spoon...
35. Britney Spears or Christina Agueliera: see above...
36. Night or day: Night...
37. Sun or moon: Moon...
38. TV or internet: Internet...
39. Playstation or Xbox: does it matter?...
40. Kisses or hugs: both, definitely both...
41. Iguana or turtle: Iguana...
42. Spider or bee: bee...
43. Fall or spring: they both have their own beauty...
46. Soccer or baseball: Soccer...

CURRENTLY
50. Drinking: water for now, thinking about some Bailey's...
51. I'm about to: finish this and watch movies...
53. Singing: "Let's Get it On" - Marvin Gaye... hey, it was just on the movie I'm watching...
54. Typing: this blog post...

FUTURE-
55. Want kids: have enough, ty...
56. When: last one was 6 years ago...
57. Want to get married: yup...
58. When: When I God lets me know I won't get hurt again...
59. Where do you want to live? PEI or Ireland...
60. How many kids? got 4 boys... they are wonderful... but don't wish any more...
61. Any names in mind? ...
62. What did you want to be when you were little? Pilot...
63. What do you plan to do now? Write & take pictures...
64. Mellow future, or wild adventures: Wild Adventures... with my camera in hand =D...
66. Something you would never try: skydiving...
67. When do you want to die? when God thinks I'm ready...

WHICH IS BETTER WITH A PARTNER?
68. Lips or eyes: the eyes are the window to the soul, they really are...
69. Hugging or kissing: Hugging, cuddles, kissing... all of the above...
70. Shorter or taller: taller, definitely taller...
71. Tanned or not: healthy... shade or colour is irrelevant...
72. Romantic or spontaneous: both...
73. Dark or light hair: I like brunettes, but whatever...
74. Muscular or normal: somewhere in between is lovely... muscular enough to make me feel safe...
75. Hook-up or relationship: relationship...

HAVE YOU EVER
78. kissed a stranger? yuppers...
79. drank bubbles? not that I recall...
80. broken a bone? yup...
81. climbed up a tree? yes...
82. broken someone's heart? yes...
83. turned someone down? yes...
84. had your heart broken? too many times...
85. liked a friend as more than a friend? definitely...

DO YOU BELIEVE IN
86. yourself? sometimes...
87. miracles? yes...
88. love at first sight? yes... and it hurts like hell...
89. Santa Claus? you bet...
90. kissing on a first date? if all is going well...
91. angels? yes...

ANSWER TRUTHFULLY
92. Is there one or more people you want to be with right now? yes, there is...
93. Who is it? now that would be telling wouldn't it...
94. Like anyone? I like lots of people... but if you mean romantically... yes, that too...

LAST
95. text message: Alan...
96. received call: Alan...
97. call made: my ex...
98. message on Facebook: Deb...
99. missed call: Kim...
100. person you hung out with: Kim...

Judge not, lest ye be judged...

2008-11-23T12:10:00.007-07:00

Matthew 7:1-5
1"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you..."

Ryan Detzler, author of the very popular blog "this is reverb" asks his readers this - "what frustrates you most about Christians?" Well there is a loaded question right there. I know lots of people that have lots of reasons for being frustrated with Christians. (This includes believers of other faiths, atheists, agnostics, and other Christians alike). One of the recurring themes I noticed as I read the comments of others was "judgement" so I will start there.

This is a big area that causes me to feel embarrassed that I am a Christian as I hear this complaint from so many. I'm not perfect by any means, I try not to judge others, but I am human... what I do NOT do is judge anyone from a place that says I'm better than them BECAUSE I am Christian... "and if I am a Christian, I am the least of all". I am in no position to make others feel bad because they are not. I believe Christianity and having a personal relationship with Jesus is about showing others love, nothing less than love.

Jesus spoke of love the most, and SHOWED that love to EVERYONE. So many are turned from even exploring the faith, or chased from faith, because Christians have told them they are bad people... Where is the LOVE?!?... It is one thing to approach someone lovingly because you know of blatant sin that may separate that person from God... It is quiet another to tell them they are going to hell just because they listen to a certain style of music, or whatever... ughhh, I could go on with this soapbox but it frustrates me so much I don't even know where to start.

My other, "pet peeve" of Christians, if you will, is those that have lead perfect, sheltered Christian lives and have no understanding of those that have gone through hell on earth and back... (this behaviour stems, I feel, directly from the place of standing judgement over others)... I was not raised Christian, I do not have Christian parents... I knew about God, I was introduced to Jesus by a very loving neighbour/landlady, but I did not know the Truth... I had faith, but knew nothing, and had to downplay even that...

My life was painful, wrought with molestation, abuse, neglect and rape... but I found comfort, even then, in a God I did not know... But when those that grew up Christian look down at those of us that are "baby" Christians, from their ivory tower and act like they do not have sin because they grew up in Christian homes, with holier than thou parents... when they look down their noses at those of us with less than perfect backgrounds... when they treat us as though we are not quite "as" Christian as they are...

3"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?"

...then I get frustrated, hurt and yes, sometimes even angry... and if you are not Christian at all, forget it, you are completely hopeless in their eyes... No, I have to agree with Ghandi at times, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” But, I am not perfect...

When I was a seeker
I sought both night and day
And I asked the lord to help me
And he showed me the way

Oh, go tell it on the mountain
Over the hills and everywhere
Go tell it on the mountain
That Jesus Christ is born

He made me a watchman, upon the city wall
And if I am a Christian
I am the least of all

Is there a time when you felt judged by a Christian? Or that you weren't as "real" a Christian because of your past? Or has there been a time when you were embarrassed to admit you are Christian... not because you wanted to deny Christ, but because of the way other Christians behaved?

Life on the farm is kinda laid back...

2008-11-22T18:30:00.005-07:00

... but not always... for the 2nd time since I moved here we had the fire department as visitors... Now that doesn't sound so good does it? I'm telling you, I think I moved in next to a bunch of pyros.... Just kidding... really... they are not any more pyro than I ;), but man, what a night we Wednesday night was...

All settled in and basically sound asleep, the dang dog kept waking me & disturbing my pup with her incessant barking.... what is with that dog anyway? Ok... back to sleep only to be shaken from my doze by somebody's vehicle horn honking repeatedly... WTH!!! It's 1:30 in the morning, my neighbour's are pretty good guys & I doubt it's them so my first thought, my truck alarm was somehow set off by the dog (I've never actually heard it yet... a good thing I think). But I mean really, I live in the middle of no where, it's not like downtown Calgary with horns blaring at other drivers regardless of the hour, this is not a common sound to hear out here at all... jig brakes, yes, loads of coyotes, yes, vehicle horns, not so much.

So up out of bed, shushing the pup to settle her back down. I look out the bedroom window at the neighbour's dog running amok and barking her head off... WHAT is her problem?!? Moving to the living room to afford a better view of the front yard, yet I still can't see anything amiss besides this crazy dog...

Heading back to my bedroom I take a quick glance out the kitchen window toward the corral & beyond that, where my neighbour's mobile home is situated...

OMGOSH!!!!!! FIRE!!!!!
"BRAT!!! GET UP!!!THE NEIGHBOUR'S PLACE IS ON FIRE!!! "

I quickly grabbed the phone and dialed 911, snatching a hoody off my bed and donned that while calling emergency services... "Thank you for calling 911... Fire, Police or Ambulance?"... "FIRE!", "Please hold while I transfer your call"... Ughhhh HOLD?... 911 and I'm on hold!!! Ok, it wasn't long but yikes... The adrenaline is rushing now and I can barely slow down my speech well enough to coherently relay my location the Fire Department as well as the nature of the emergency...

Phone in hand I managed to get my boots on, coat on, gloves on, toque and even grab a camera... still on the phone I ran out of the house and ran past the north side of the corral and came around the corner to this...

Holy mega bonfire batman! Where earlier today my neighbours shed & shop stood there is little left but rubble and metal. The fellow from Alberta Highway Services that spotted the fire met me at this point, both of us on our phones with the fire department. After pounding on my neighbour's door he had finally woken "B, my neighbour's brother and the only one home at the time. He came around the corner of the mobile in obvious shock as to what was happening.

BTW, as both of us were woken from a dead sleep by B's rescuer, we were each clad in winter wear... and pyjama pants... plaid flannel for B, lovely baby pink fleece with cartoonish reindeer for me... do we care? Not one whit... lol!

Can you see the wheels on the left in the photo above? That's the front end of another brother's quad...

This is the skeletal remains of a baker's rack he was letting me have (damn procrastinating)...

Finally the fire department has arrived (we are a good distance from town)...

Three fire department vehicles and the town EMS were on scene...

Getting it under control...

The smoke and steam nearly obscure the fire fighters from our sight as they work...

The pumper truck shines a large spotlight on the area, it's brilliance nearly feels like daylight...

The crazy dog now thinks she's a fire dog, they can't have her, she saved B's life with her barking...

The fire fighters are impressively thorough, flipping over the remains of twisted hunks of metal, large appliances and what is left of the garden shed floor to drown any coals in water and fire suppression foam...

Approximately 3:00 am: The fire is finally out, B has returned to bed as he drives out at 4 am for a long day on the roads. The town fire team is packing up after saving the day...

Before: The shop with the stove pipe sticking out of the roof sits just behind my horse , beyond that is the garden shed...

This is where they once stood, not much more than a scar left on the ground...

I think this was his workout bench, twisted from the heat of the fire...

The quad: Isn't it odd how it affected everything on it except in front of the handles...

On the left is the shop door, only the metal exoskeleton remains, the core is completely gone. The square container on the left is the metal housing of a dishwasher that was awaiting installation in their home...

On the left here is an old fridge I had given them from my house in town, it was outside of the shop. On the right is actually a deep freezer...

You can see how close to their home the fire was, and despite the heavy winds of the night, there is no damage. An amazing miracle as the siding is wood. The fellow that raised the alarm could not put his hand on the wall during the worst of the fire as the mobile wall was too hot...

The corral fence lit on fire too, but seems to have sustained little sturctural damage and only surface scarring for the most part. Throughout the fiery ordeal I kept a halter & rope in hand in case I needed to quickly remove my horse. Fortunately the corral is a good size and she was able to stay a good distance from the fire...

The remains of either the garden shed floor or a wall from either the shed or the shop. Only this, a few large beams and anything made of thicker metal remain...

All in all, a rather exciting, yet scary night... the suspected cause: a brooder lamp left hanging over an old couch. It was set on a timer to heat a small area late at night for the comfort of the cats. It was the only electric item plugged in and the wood stove had not been in use for quite some time.

A Pittance of Time....

2008-11-11T11:33:00.005-07:00

Remembrance Day – also known as Poppy Day, Armistice Day (the event it commemorates) or Veterans Day – is a day to commemorate the sacrifices of members of the armed forces and of civilians in times of war, specifically since the First World War. It is observed on 11 November to recall the end of World War I on that date in 1918.

Please take a few minutes to Remember those that sacrificed the comforts of home and their lives so we can enjoy the freedoms we have in our country. God bless all our troupes & Veterans!

Click on the logo above for the official Terry Kelly home page.

They fought and some died for their homeland.

They fought and some died, now it's our land.

Look at his little child; there's no fear in her eyes.

Could he not show respect for other dads who have died?

Take two minutes, would you mind?
It's a pittance of time,

For the boys and the girls who went over.

In peace may they rest, may we never

forget why they died.

It's a pittance of time.

God forgive me for wanting to strike him.

Give me strength so as not to be like him.

My heart pounds in my breast, fingers pressed to my lips,

My throat wants to bawl out, my tongue barely resists.

But two minutes I will bide.
It's a pittance of time,

For the boys and the girls who went over.

In peace may they rest.

May we never forget why they died.

It's a pittance of time.

Read the letters and poems of the heroes at home.

They have casualties, battles, and fears of their own.

There's a price to be paid if you go, if you stay.

Freedom's fought for and won in numerous ways.

Take two minutes, would you mind?
It's a pittance of time,

For the boys and the girls all over.

May we never forget, our young become vets.

At the end of the line,

It's a pittance of time.

It takes courage to fight in your own war.

It takes courage to fight someone else's war.

Our peacekeepers tell of their own living hell.

They bring hope to foreign lands that hate mongers can't kill.

Take two minutes, would you mind?
It's a pittance of time,

For the boys and the girls who go over.

In peacetime our best still don battle dress

And lay their lives on the line.

It's a pittance of time

In peace may they rest,

Lest we forget why they died.

Take a pittance of time.

Just Horsing Around

2008-11-06T19:09:00.022-07:00

We often seem to come up with ~~weird~~ ~~crazy~~ ~~bizaare~~ interesting topics in the chat room I frequent on a daily basis, particularly being a group with quite a large variation of backgrounds. Tonight I was asking insanelybusymomma about a photo of her horse on her blog and found out in all likelyhood said horsey is gonna be a momma. That in itself doesn't sound too ~~weird~~ ~~absurd~~ odd of a conversation. However, this is where the conversation went from there:

"C" (6:38:22 PM): Possibly, not sure, I've not had her preg checked yet
"C" (6:38:32 PM): She is in with our Joey ;-)
me (6:38:47 PM): :-D
"C" (6:38:50 PM): For some reason dh wants a baby donkey :-\ LOL
me (6:39:40 PM): and she's pregnant with a donkey?
"G" (6:39:49 PM): *scratching head*
me (6:40:56 PM): **stand beside Gwendy and scratch my head too**
"C" (6:39:52 PM): *sigh* yes....
ces't moi (6:39:54 PM): so that makes a mule?

And from there the conversation became a discussion on what happens when you cross a donkey with a horse (sounds like a bad joke doesn't it)... and this is what we learned thanks to the wonderful people that contribute their ~~useless trivia~~ wealth of knowledge to Wikipedia:

Horse: The horse (Equus caballus) is a hoofed (ungulate) mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae.

(This is my horse, Dee is her nickname... She is not pregnant by any one currently ;) )

Donkey: The donkey or ass, Equus asinus, is a member of the Equidae or horse family, and an odd-toed ungulate.

(The busy donkey in question, Chris' Joey)

Mule: In its common modern meaning, a mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse, which is classified as a kind of F1 hybrid.

Colbran rancher Larry Amos watches as the mule foal nuzzles its mother, Kate, a 7-year-old "molly" that gave birth three months ago to the still-unnamed "miracle" offspring. Genetic tests confirmed that the foal is Kate's. (Ed Kosmicki | Special to The Post)

Hinny: A hinny is a domestic equine hybrid which is the offspring of a male horse and a female donkey (called a jennet or jenny).

(Goody is a Mini-Hinny (I love the play on words with that))

And there you go... just in case you were wondering. A Campbell's Condensed version of Family Equidae (not to exclude or isolate zebras, but they did not come up in conversation ;) ). Hope you enjoyed that diversion into our little world... straight from the horse's mouth :D!

“Don't approach a goat from the front, a horse from the back, or a fool from any side.”

~ Yiddish Proverb

MAWOY!! xoxox

Wordless Wednesday - First Snowfall 2008

2008-11-05T12:40:00.014-07:00

Ok, so they have nothing to do with the snow... but aren't they sooooo cute :D

And so the day begins...

2008-11-04T08:28:00.001-07:00

Another morning arrives and the need to drag my blessed assurance out of bed and launch my boys to school. This morning I'm being a bit extra lazy and laying in longer as I'm only sending the seven year old ~~terror~~ sweet boy as his younger ~~terror~~ darling brother had a nasty case of the pukes yesterday and for the sake of all thought it best to keep him home another day. Said seven year old is the picture of efficiency... but only between 7:00 and 7:30 am on a school day, the rest of the time he drives me to wits end. However, that efficiency was allowing me a few extra minutes of ~~laziness~~ rest until this incredible, ~~annoying~~ sweet child being the incredible, ~~annoying~~ sweet morning person that he is, pokes his head in my bedroom, "is it time for school Mom?".... ughhh.

Continuing in the mode of today's efficiency 7yo's lunch and breakfast were both packed in a matter of five or six minutes. During which this morning child of mine has dressed and is helping me. So now, without my morning imitator (6yo) keeping our efficiency ~~non-existent~~ at a minimum, we had 17 minutes before having to get ready. What to do? For me, climb on the computer just to stay awake. 7yo read a Bernstein's Bears book, which of course he polished off in about 7 minutes.

7:28 AM and time to bundle up and catch the school bus. We're all ready to go, and half way across the deck my morning person decides he wants to walk alone. Well I have two rather rambunctious dogs that would happily knock him over, lick him to death then steal his lunch like a neighbourhood bully. So I give the boy a hug and kiss and in that below zero morning air (that's celsius for my american friends, it's not that cold here... yet) I have to stand and make sure he doesn't get mauled by canines.

They're not bad dogs, just rather hyper and lovable, each with their own brand of excitableness. The puppy was no where to be seen this morning, which is ok, as she's likely sleeping on the neighbour's deck. She sits well and is content to be quiet while you pet her, just really getting into those scratches behind the ears. But if she sees you from across the yard, she's a force to be reckoned with. 60+ pounds of fur and muscle will come hurtling at you at the speed of light and of my children's normal reaction? flight, not a good choice with this pup. Not so my neighbour's dog, no feeling of terror as she comes up to you, all is seemingly innocent as she plops herself on her butt, looks at you with her big brown eyes and gives a little whine. But then the fun begins because as SOON AS you touch her she goes ballistic, whining and wiggling and jumping and licking and all manner of doggy annoyances. Brilliant me, forgetting that she is a 75 pound jumping bean, bends over to pet her and keep her away from the boy and the bus... promptly getting smoked in the chin by her head and damn near biting my tongue off in the process. And that is the start to my day... I think someone screwed up and today is Monday...

The culprit to the crime...

Really... just what the heck WAS I thinking???

2008-10-22T09:46:00.011-06:00

Anger, n.
1. an emotion, subjectively experienced as an aroused state toward someone or something perceived to be the source of an aversive event;
2. A strong feeling of displeasure or hostility.

Hurt, adj.
1.a wound or pain; to be painful;
2. wounded, physically injured;
3. pained
v.
4.to cause (a creature) physical pain and/or injury;
5. to cause (somebody) emotional pain;

Betray, v.
1. fail: disappoint, prove undependable to; abandon, forsake
2. deceive: cause someone to believe an untruth

I took him back... I forgave the past, I couldn't quite forget, but I forgave it and was willing to move forward for what I thought we shared. I thought he was one of my best friends, my match... I was was wrong and I have learnt a hard and painful lesson from it. I'm not a bitter person, I don't hold grudges for very long, even when hurt badly. I don't exact revenge... I try to be the better person when someone hurts me and I don't kick people when they are down. I respected and trusted him, one of my best friends, and when I was in the midst of grief for the loss of my stepdad and a friend, he kicked me, he kicked me real hard.

I was betrayed in so many ways; I was so angry and hurt, if he'd been close enough I would have spat on him for his lack of sensitivity, lack of judgement, for his cruelty. Who does that sort of thing??? (Wikipedia PD)

Nearly two weeks later I am ready to let go of that hurt, to say my piece and move on. Not too bad really all things considered. I wrote a reply to his "dear jane" email today... the email that left me with a broken heart and broken spirit. I won't send it, at least not likely as the email is not for him, it's for me. I poured my heart and soul and all the hurt he caused me and is causing to others, into that reply. I held nothing back, and I feel good about it. I needed to vent the hurt, the anger, in a constructive way, disentagling myself from my involment in his behaviour, and it helped, a lot.

Today a good friend gave me a couple of websites that were very helpful, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, aka NPD, in all it's forms (PD), is a very real illness and I do not have to be bound to this type of person; it is in fact draining and unhealthy for me. I cannot be what this person needs, because no matter how far I reach, I can't fill the void within him, only he can do that himself, and only if he acknowledges the need.

Now I can put the anger and the hurt behind me, I can let go of the pain that only prevents me from being all I can be and causes him no grief. As for him, all I can do is pray for him, pray he will acknowledge this behaviour, pray he finds the help he needs, pray no one else is hurt. With God I am strong, with my friends I have support, respect and love; I can, and already am, moving forward.

Legomania...

2008-10-01T08:40:00.001-06:00

In September I created a post about "Sevens..." I mentioned that I love building Lego with my boys so a few days after we pulled Alexander's new Lego out and this is the result...

This is the Lego Alexander received, from mommy, for a late birthday present (he got an early one too, no worries).

The box for Lego Agents...

Mission 3... Sorting the pieces (believe me, it is worth the time)...

The "good guy's" jet...

Reading instructions & starting the "bad guys' " vehicle...

The "bad guys' " vehicle...

The finished product, woo hoo, we love Lego :D

This is a pretty cool Lego line and as there are more "missions" to go with we may have to get some more.

My personal favourite that I really like to work with is Lego Technic... especially with my boyfriend :D and with my love of my acreage and the farm we are surrounded by, Lego Farming is a must have on my wishlist; just about anything from Technic is awesome though.

One day I'd really like to try Lego Mindstorms, I think it would be a lot of fun too. So even if you don't have young boys, give it a shot, it's quite a lot of fun and good for your brain too :D!

bloggerama!

2008-09-14T10:05:00.005-06:00

Ok, so in my last post I told ya'll about my new found hobby and how it wasn't so much (not at all really) the following of a trend but the genuine love of writing and reading that finally sucked me in. I actually enjoy writing this ~~crap junk~~ blog and thinking of new ideas to post even it does bore the heck out of everyone else... well I'm having fun :D. And seriously, I did put the disclaimer in about operating heavy machinery.

So I have this blog (considering a possible name change) and that's all well and good; But am I content to leave it at that? Nooooo... of course not, because once miss shannon climbs on a bandwagon, well, there is no climbing, we're talking jumping on with both feet like I'm trying win the Olympic High Jump. So... drum roll please.... tada... "domestic adventures in procrastination" has been launched... the latest addition to my blog family :). Pretty sure the name says it all, so let's see if we can maintain TWO of these dang things... lol. Hoping to set up a personal url so I can bring it all together in one place one day... I'll add that to my "to do list" ;).

Continuing with the whole blog theme I thought this would be a good time to mention a blog I've started following with my friends Trish, Chris, Sunny & Angelic... and btw we're blaming Chris for the original link ;)... love ya Chris... muah. "Confessions of a Pioneer Woman" is an amazing adventure in a woman's life from city girl to country wife. I've been following her blog for a few days and she's really a very good writer. But never content to let sleeping dogs lie two night ago I got sucked into the world of "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels". Oh my gosh! Can this woman ever write a tale... this is her love story with Marlboro Man, a real life, honest to goodness tale of romance and love found. If you choose to follow this link, be prepared to set aside a good 3 hours because you will not be able to stop reading once you get past Chapter II. Oh for the next installment... **sigh**.

Trendsetter, Follower or Individualist?

2008-09-12T11:33:00.011-06:00

I've never been much of a follower as far as trends go... in high school I'd get harrassed by friends for not wearing much makeup and not having "pour in" jeans on. I'm not really a trendsetter either, tending more towards marching to the beat of my own drum, a free spirit or even a loan wolf if you will. If I do end up appearing to follow a trend, it is because I took time to decide what I really think about something and then if I decide it'll work for me... well I just "do it".

I did finally start wearing those "pour in" jeans, although not sure how that worked for me aside from the can't eat much whilst wearing them, thus not making them even tighter. Low rise jeans/trousers... well that was one trend it didn't take me long to jump on... they are soooo much more comfy than pants that go right up to your waist and make you feel like you are cut in half... man I put on some old jeans I could finally get into and whipped them right off... sure they fit, but a waist band on my **shock** waist?... yucky! Chances are if that trend dies... well I'll still be searching for low risers. I like my clothes comfy.

When Ty Beanie Babies came out I thought people were crazy, going nuts over a bunch of stuffed toys just because they had a tag and a name on them and everyone else is doing it. I'm not even sure how it happened, but I ended up with two Beanie Babies about 2 years into the Beanie Baby craze and I was hooked. I mostly ended up collecting bears only aside from a couple of others I thought were cute. I'm missing Maple Bear though and that frustrates me... lol.

So when I first heard about "blogging" my first reaction was... wth is a blog??? When I was duly informed of the purpose, my first thought was people that have "blogs" were bizaarely crazy attention mongers. Who in their right mind wants to share their personal life, their private trials, tribulations and triumphs, on the internet? A place where anyone and their dog can read about it! Well I guess the laugh is on me... this is sooo addicting.

The story goes like this... someone either sent me an email or told me in chat about this eBay auction some chick/mom/lady had up for Pokemon cards. I was... "why do I want to see an auction selling Pokemon cards, we got more dang Pokemon cards than we know what to do with?" Just check it out, I was told. I saved the link to look at later...

Later... I laughed so hard when I finally took the time to read that ad I nearly peed my pants... my low rise, not so tight anymore, jeans just about got a pee bath. She was/is soooo funny! Well there was a link for her blog, "Because I Said So..." and I just HAD to read more... here is the original eBay auction saved on her blog, "Adventures in Grocery Shopping". Thanks to Google-ing for helping me find that quickly :D.

That was over a year ago, but I was inspired and I created my blog name, set up a profile and on 24th of August 2007 I wrote my first blog entry. Ok, so I didn't get regular with it until very recently (but whoever said I was regular???). I really wanted to, but something or another held me back and it just wasn't happening very often. "Oh, I'll get around to it"... so here is my "round tuit" and I have no excuse anymore. I love writing, I really love reading the blogs of others (see my list to the right), especially friends, and I guess I've jumped on the blogging trend with both feet finally (and hands, I don't type so good with toes...). So be afraid... be very afraid...

My inspirations come from various circumstances, something on another's blog post, sometimes an occurrence that day (my kids crack me up, or just some randomness that pops in my head (you'd be scared to see the thoughts that just "pop up" in my head). I have nearly as many drafts sitting in my Edit Posts box as I do actual published posts and that's ok too, because if I start running out of things to write about... well there they are, the ideas sitting there waiting for me. So if you're looking for a little bit of a guffaw, a little bit of inspiration or especially if you are having trouble sleeping some night (please do not operate heavy machinery after reading these posts). Pop on in, read away and leave me a comment and your blog addy. I'd love to add you to my blogroll :D. (Don't you love all these new and made up internet inspired words?... "I 'Googled' that" or "She's a great blogger".)

It's raining here today, pouring now really... here one of my favourite rain tunes...

Supertramp, "It's Raining Again"

Where Were You? 9.11.2001

2008-09-11T19:21:00.007-06:00

Remembering those that died that day, and the family they left behind. My prayers go up for those that lost someone that day and the days following.

My Trip to Ground Zero in 2004

Well isn't that Just Ducky !!

Odd choices....

Monday Motivation: Simplicity

Monday Motivation: Give 'em Attitude

Monday Motivation: Goals & Pipe Dreams

Simple Pleasures

Babysteps, Patience and Goals, oh my.....

Oops.....

And now, these words from our sponsor...

Having a Martha House the Mary Way

Life is NOT a Dress Rehearsal!

True North, Strong and Free!

Day 3!

Happy New Year 2011 !!

Eat Less, Move More.......

Dear Santa Claus,

Oh how I love a good book!!

Frogs and snails And puppy-dogs' tails....

Once in a blue moon....

November 11th, 2010

One Blessing at a Time...

Customer Service is Not a Dead Art

Chocolate Loaf Cake, Wherefore Art Thou?

Judged...

Best laid plans......

Where's Shannon???

twitter or facebook........

Many people will walk in and out of your life,But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

Journaling: Handwritten in a book or Blog it.....

Be prepared... winter driving....

Day 9 at Wii Fitting!

Remembrance Day 2009

BlogBlast for Peace

The Flu Vaccine Debate….

Life on the farm…. (cont’d)

Blessing of the Fishing Fleet: October 4th Holidays & Observances

Psalm 104:25-27

Psalm 107:23-32

Count Your Blessings…..

Ok, ok already.... I'm back....

Because I currently have nothing better to do...

Judge not, lest ye be judged...

Life on the farm is kinda laid back...

A Pittance of Time....

Just Horsing Around

“Don't approach a goat from the front, a horse from the back, or a fool from any side.”

~ Yiddish Proverb

Wordless Wednesday - First Snowfall 2008

And so the day begins...

Really... just what the heck WAS I thinking???

Legomania...

bloggerama!

Trendsetter, Follower or Individualist?

Where Were You? 9.11.2001

Many people will walk in and out of your life,
But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.