Camping

Friday afternoon I left work, headed home, finished packing, picked up Seth, picked up Aaron and hit the road. From my house to the campground was a drive of just over four hours. My parents had left about an hour before us but they had to stop and see Robert on the way. The reason we went to a campground so far away was because it was about ten minutes from his new place. They got to see his store and his apartment and we met them at the campground.

Driving was a lot of fun. We cranked Kenny and sang along. At one point we (Seth and I) were trying to sing along to "You Had Me From Hello" but we kept getting inturrupted and we had to restart the song about four times. You had to be there but it was hysterical.

By the time we got to the campsite it was dark. We had a really nice spot right down by the lake. There were willow trees lining the bank and you could see the lights from the highway across the lake reflecting on the water. Seth stayed with Robert for the weekend and Mom, Dad, Aaron and I stayed in the tent. Friday night I slept horribly. It was kind of damp out so my nose was running and I couldn't get comfortable.

Saturday morning the boys came over for breakfast (eggs, bacon and hashbrowns) and then we headed out to a classic car show by a different lake. It's always fun to watch my dad and brothers oohing and aahing over the shiny vehicles. We only spent an hour or so there before heading over to the Historic O'Keefe Ranch That was really neat. Lots of history and interesting displays. I forgot to clear my camera card before I left so for each picture I took I had to delete one at the beginning of the card (I've downloaded most of them but not all). It limited my picture taking which was probably a good thing.

By the time we got back to the campsite, via a fruit stand for nectarines and corn-on-the-cob, we were all really tired. The boys, Dad and I laid down and had a nap which was really refreshing.

Dinner was chicken, potatoes, carrots and the corn, cooked in foil packets over the fire pit. Yummy! After that we sat around the fire and reminisced about our childhood (like it's SO long ago :P) It was really nice though. We went to bed around 11 and slept really, really well. It was a lot dryer out so Dad didn't snore as much and my nose didn't run.

Sunday morning the boys came over for breakfast again (pancakes and breakfast sausages) and then we headed North to where my dad's sister and her husband had just gotten off a week on a house boat! I learned later that they (my aunt and uncle and my parents) had coordinated this ahead of time but when they called I thought it was a great coincidence.

We spent some time with them at Tim Hortons and then headed home. On the way back Seth and I had a great talk (while Aaron napped). I'm really glad we were able to fit that in.

Now it's Monday morning and I have a TON of stuff to do for work and personally. We're ramping up for the AGM in September at work so there are all sorts of mailouts and email blasts and deadlines to coordinate.

Personally I'm volunteering for the local summer games as well as fitting in all the fun summer stuff that I like to try and get involved with. I'll try and keep you posted as we go along.

~Heidi

ALW: Granville Island

I really, really wish I could share pictures. Oh well, I'll try and do it in words.

Monday Mom, Dad, Seth, Aaron and I went to Granville Island in Vancouver. For those of you not from the area, it's a fun artsy spot with an open market and lots of neat shops. Similar in some ways to Pikes Place in Seattle but smaller.

Monday was a gorgeous day and they had all sorts of "BC Day" Celebrations. Artists doing chalk pictures on the sidewalk, buskers and community booths. It was a bit interesting finding parking but once we did we had fun.

For a long time I've been saying that I want to start collecting martini glasses. Not just any one, but the cool ones with neat stems, or the ones made out of interesting material. Monday I bought my first one. The stem is corkscrew style. Very neat.

We ate lunch at the market and then headed over to West Vancouver. The sun was setting so we found a place on the beach and enjoyed the feeling of the sand between our toes and the light breeze blowing. I love BC :D

We got home around 8:30 and Seth rented "Cassanova" It was way better then either of us expected. Very funny. If you like "A Knight's Tale" you'll love this one. Of course I was scrapbooking the whole time which drove Seth nuts but it was fun for me.

There. That's my weekend. This weekend we're going camping so I'm sure I'll have lots to fill you in on when I'm back.

Hope y'all are having as much fun with life as I am!!!

~Heidi

ALW: SSWA2.5

It's now Friday afternoon and I haven't finished updating my blog from LAST weekend. Let's see if I can finish up my last two entries before I have to leave.

August Long Weekend: ScrapShare Washington Crop 2.5

A bunch of my internet friends have an annual crop in Washington State in January. This year we had a member from the board fly out from Michigan so we decided to have a bi-annual get together, hence the "2.5".

I drove down with Terri, someone who I met online and face to face in Calgary at Showcase, who actually lives about 20 minutes from me, in the town where I used to work. Getting across the border took longer then it needed too because it was busy. Oh, and we accidently tripped their radiation sensor because we sat between the laser for too long so we had to go inside and explain ourselves to the guards. Once we did they let us go without a problem (not even a $6 fee!!!)

The Crop was a lot of fun. I got to sit beside Diane, our special guest from Michigan and my "twin" :) I am working on a 7x7 album of all the concerts I've attended so I organized the pictures and paper for that and cut out twenty titles! I used every letter of the alphabet but Q and Z! I'm acutually halfway done assembling the album as of today too.

We also celebrated my birthday. Everyone got awesome paper crowns and Di and Darrcie made me a really nice, very yummy cake. I don't actually have pictures of the event so I can't lament not being able to post them. If anyone who reads this DOES have pictures though, I'd love to have copies!!!

Saturday was good, the scrapbooking ended way too soon. Oh, and we got to take a trip to the LSS (local scrapbook store). Veronica, you'll be proud of me. I bought my first Basic Grey!!! I'm going to use it for the Brad Paisley concert from January.

Saturday night after we left the church where the crop took place we tried to find some fast food. Easier said then done. McDonalds closed at 10:30pm. On a SATURDAY! Wendy's only had the drive thru open. Very weird. We got back to Darrcie's and chatted until I couldn't keep my eyes open. Then we split up. A bunch of us stayed in Darrcies *very* nice trailer. Diane and I talked until we fell asleep in the middle of our sentences. It was fun :)

Sunday we got up, had breakfast, visited for awhile and then Terri and I hit the road again. On the way back we stopped at Michaels but didn't buy anything. Then we went to another LSS and each bought some BC stickers. Get this. They were regularly twenty nine cents but they were on sale for 75% off! Nine cents each!!! We did get a "project of the month" too so we did actually spend money :P

When I got home I watched the ABC Special CMA Fest that someone sent me on DVD. Then I went and laid down because I was pretty wiped from two late nights. That was at 6:30. I woke up at 10 and changed into my pj's and slept until 9 the next morning!

Stay tuned for Monday's adventures :)

~Heidi

ALW: Cowboys & Concerts

The one event that I like to attend annually is the local agri-fair. This year I only had two things I wanted to see. The rodeo, to get my cowboy fix, and the Friday night headliners, local BC Band, The Cruzeros.

The rodeo was good as always. We're starting to attract some big names and big money earners in rodeo which always makes it more interesting. Unfortunately I had to leave the rodeo early in order to see the concert, so I missed the fun stuff like bull riding. Oh well, maybe next year.

The Cruzeros were a lot of fun. I've heard their songs on the radio for awhile and I have their latest cd from the library. They put on a really fun show. Sort of rootsy/folk style. Their keyboard guy is amazing. He produces all sorts of really cool sounds.

Afterwards I got my picture taken with the three lead singers. Again, if blogger was allowing me to post I would :(

~Heidi

August Long Weekend: The Phone Chapter

This really was a long weekend, in a good way. I fit *so* much into it! I'm going to post updates as seperate chapters.

August Long Weekend ("ALW"): The Phone Chapter

First of all when I left work on Friday I went straight to the cell phone store where my friend Jenna works. We’ve talked a bit about phones and stuff and Friday I got one. It’s a basic Nokia. I picked it because it was free with the contract. I’m on an unlimited contract for the first three months and after that I have a pretty basic package. When I told Seth he was like “What kind of phone is it?”
“What’s the model number?”
“You chose it because it was free?”
“Yeah, we have the same phone”
Oh well, it’s actually been good. He’s been able to show me how to use it! The first thing he did for me was download “Living in Fast Forward” as a ring tone :D I still need to get a nice looking wallpaper (he has “Mater” from “Cars”) Then we’ll be able to tell them apart better.

~Heidi

PS I wrote this blog entry yesterday but the internet was down so I couldn't post it. Today at lunch I stopped by the dollar store for some scrubby pads and I got a really cute pink phone holder with a black embroidered "H" on it. I'd post a picture but blogger isn't letting me :(

Coffee Confessions

I have a confession to make. As much as I try and be a Starbucks snob, I’ve been cheating on them with Tim Hortons. I won’t say it’s “just as good” because it’s not. It’s definitely cheap coffee. Starbucks is better quality but you PAY for that quality and lately Tim Hortons has been filling my cravings just fine. French Vanilla Cappuccino’s when it’s cold out and 2% Iced Cap’s when it’s warm (like right now). I even got a $20 Starbucks gift card for my birthday and I’m STILL hitting Timmy’s. Don’t get me wrong, I still go to Starbucks but as a quick snack, $2.50 is easier to handle than $4.50 for a cold drink and $2 and change over $4 and change for a hot drink.

There. It’s out. I am Canadian whether I like it or not :P

~Heidi

Hmph

Tuesday my parents went to give blood. I could have but I chose to wait for two weeks until I have a better chance of passing the iron test. Today I find out that this week was open house for the auxilary fire fighters!!! That's what I get for skipping out. I miss all the fire fighters. Hmph!!!
~Heidi

Chicken Soup

Yesterday (Wednesday) Mom and Dad took me out to the Mango Tree for a birthday dinner. The Mango Tree is a newish Thai restaurant close to our old house. It has really good food. I’m not going to pretend to remember what we had. Basically spring rolls as an appetizer, a noodle dish, a rice dish and a pad thai dish. Mom and I split a lycee – mango dessert. It was unique but quite tasty. Dad and Aaron both had friend bananas with mango ice cream.

On the way to dinner I stopped at their Mom and Dad house to pick up laundry and mail. Along with my Visa statement I found a package from Amazon.com addressed to me. It was a copy of the brand new "Chicken Soup for the Scrapbooker's Soul". A birthday/house warming present from Veronica in Australia. It had Donna's story on Page 68. I knew it was coming out but I didn't realize it was released yet. What a wonderful gift!!! Thank you SO much. I am thoroughly enjoying reading it and remembering Donna.

It was fun to show it to my dad and say "The women (Donna, Stacy and Sherilyn) that this story is about is the reason that I went to Pennsylvania last year. It's the reason I'm going to DC this year. It's the reason I go to Washington State all the time (including this Saturday for the SS WA 2.5 Crop). It's the reason Veronica came to visit last year and why Di is coming from Michigan via Tacoma." Donna's life and Stacy and Sherilyn's crazy adventure changed mine and many other lives and it is so exciting to see it in print.

Thank you again for the book. I will treasure it always. :wub:

~Heidi

Inefficient

Wow. I’d forgotten how inefficient covering reception can be. I was in the reception position for most of seven years. In the past four months I have completely gotten out of the groove and now a phone call throws me for a huge loop.

Our receptionist is on vacation this week and our part time receptionist doesn’t work Thursday’s or Friday’s. I volunteered to cover phones during lunch hour awhile ago so now I am on full time phone duty today and tomorrow. It’s brutal! Especially since I don’t have the knowledge at hand to answer enquiries as quickly as I’d like to. Even determining what they want and who would be best to answer their questions is difficult. It is GREAT experience for me but it’s HARD.

Plus, it is SO disruptive. I feel a lot like Winnie the Pooh today. He says

“Do you ever stop to think and forget to start again?”

Yup. Every time the phone rings!

~Heidi

Tradition!

We are currently in the middle of a surprise visit from a director. My boss said to look busy so I'm blogging :D

We just finished having cake. Ice Cream cake from DQ. It's a birthday tradition for me so when they asked what kind of cake I wanted, that's what I ordered. It was yummy!

Okay, the director's gone. Back to work :P

~Heidi

Me, at 25

I CASEd this from Cowtown Stacy's blog. I was going to fill it out a few weeks ago but I decided to wait until today, my acutal birthday to do it. So, this is "Me, at 25"

1. IF YOU COULD BUILD A HOUSE ANYWHERE, WHERE WOULD IT BE?
Somewhere here in the valley. Probably in town. I'm not sure what part though.

2. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ARTICLE OF CLOTHING?
Either my black cordoury skirt or my new jean jacket

3. FAVORITE PHYSICAL FEATURE OF THE OPPOSITE SEX?
Eyes, and if he can maintain eye contact. It drives me nuts when people can't look me in the eye.

4. THE LAST CD YOU BOUGHT?
Danielle Peck's self titled because it has "Finding a Good Man" on it and it was cheap at Target

5. WHERE'S YOUR LEAST FAVORITE PLACE TO BE?
With someone boring

6. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO BE MASSAGED?
My back. I need a massage right now too. Any takers?

7. WHAT'S MOST IMPORTANT, STRONG IN MIND OR STRONG IN BODY?
Strong in mind. Strong in body is great, I'd love to be strong in body (especially after this weekend) but if you don't have the spiritual resiliance to back it up, all the physical strength in the world won't make a difference.

8. WHAT TIME DO YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING?
My alarm is set for 6:33 (That way I wake up to music instead of the news)

9. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE KITCHEN APPLIANCE?
I really like blenders...of course I don't actually HAVE one. That's on my "List of things to buy"

10. WHAT MAKES YOU REALLY ANGRY?
Intollerance
Rudeness
Stupid Drivers

11. IF YOU COULD PLAY ANY INSTRUMENT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
The drums. Seriously. I have this hankering to learn how and my steering wheel just isn't cutting it.

12. FAVORITE COLOR?
Anything bright. I love colour, I don't care what colour but I like lots of it. My new STARK WHITE apartment is slowly eating away at my soul.

13. WHICH DO YOU PREFER, SPORTS CAR OR SUV?
Sedan. ::sigh:: I am SO boring. Both of those take way too much gas though. Second choice would be a truck :P

14. DO YOU BELIEVE IN AFTERLIFE?
Heck yeah! I know where I'm going, do you?

15. FAVORITE CHILDREN'S BOOK?
"Bread and Jam for Francis"

16. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SEASON?
Spring. I love the freshness of the new flowers and the lengthening days and the anticipation of summer.

17. IF YOU COULD HAVE ONE SUPER POWER, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
To fly. It is a more economical, environmentally friendly way to travel, plus it would be COOL!!!

18. IF YOU HAVE A TATTOO, WHAT IS IT?
I don't have one but I like the idea of a small maple leaf

19. CAN YOU JUGGLE?
Sometimes, if I concentrate REALLY hard

20. THE ONE PERSON FROM YOUR PAST YOU WISH YOU COULD GO BACK AND TALK TO?
Grandma B. I've never met a more loving, common-sense-smart woman in my life. I miss her a lot.

21. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE DAY?
Of the week? It fluctuates. Right now I'll say Saturday because the possibilities for that day are endless!

22. WHAT'S IN THE TRUNK OF YOUR CAR?
Shoes, books, empty water bottles, a blanket, empty plastic bags and various other flotsam

23. WHICH DO YOU PREFER, SUSHI OR HAMBURGER?
Sushi, but if I had it yesterday, then a hamburger :D

24. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CARTOON?
I don't watch "cartoons" per se. I like full length Disney films though.
As for comic strips, Mutts. Hands down. And I'm not even that much of a "pet" person.

25. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MEAL?
Anything I don't have to cook LOL

28. If you could only choose one fantasy servant, who would it be (chauffeur/gardener/cook/masseuse/other)?
House cleaner. I'll learn to cook. I still don't enjoy cleaning though.

29. FOUR WORDS THAT SUM YOU UP: task-oriented, loyal, positive, tolerant

30. FAVORITE PIG-OUT FOODS: Lays salt n' vinegar chips, Ruffles all dressed chips, Ms. Vickies red pepper and sour cream chips...are we seeing a pattern here yet?

31. THREE OF YOUR EVERY DAY ESSENTIALS: water, internet, radio

32. THREE WAYS YOU'VE BEEN BLESSED: 1. My faith. 2. My family. 3. My friends.

33. WHICH OF THE FOUR HOBBITS ARE YOU MOST LIKE? I haven't got a clue.

34.WHAT'S YOUR BIGGEST PERSONALITY FLAW? Impatience with my family and procrastination, if that's a personality flaw

35. HOW DO YOU COPE WITH STRESSFUL SITUATIONS? I procrastinate and avoid the situation

36. ARE YOU HAPPY ON THIS BIRTHDAY? Yep. I'm tired but I'm really excited about life.

Moving In

It's done. We're officially in. My bed is set up and my alarm clock is plugged in...and that's about it :P I am SO tired. I have WAY too much stuff to carry up a series of steps, down a very long hallway and into the apartment. I single handedly filled the storage room almost to the top.

Big, big, big thanks to my youngest brother Aaron and his friends Ryan (in the blue) and Dillon (not shown) They were troopers, carry LOTS of heavy boxes and akward furniture.

That's me standing in front of about half of my boxes in front of the building. Seth had borrowed the truck from work and he had to get it back by four so we ended up unloading onto the road and taking it in from there.

We're at my parents house for dinner tonight (cause heaven knows WE don't have any food) but we'll be sleeping in our apartment tonight. I'll try and post picutres of inside asap.

~Heidi

The end of an era

I didn't sleep very well last night. It didn't help that I didn't actually crawl into bed until almost midnight because I was watching "Blue Collar Comedy Tour: One for the Road" with my parents, but when I *did* get to bed I had a hard time sleeping. I was/am very excited but nervous at the same time. Last night it hit me that I'm MOVING OUT. Not just house sitting, not going on a trip, *I* am moving and my family isn't coming with me.

The moving part itself doesn't bother me. I've done it. Lots. The fact that my parents aren't coming does. I know it's right and good and definitely what I want but in the words of Rachel from "Friends" "It's the end of an era!!!" Hopefully I won't blubber like too much of an idiot this afternoon :P

~Heidi

Reflections on Moving

Janis and family came home last night. I went out to say "welcome back", return the key, and make sure everything was good...oh, and to pick up a few albums I'd forgotten (let's see what else I left there). When I got home I told Mom "Alright, I'm here to stay...for at least 36 hours" Sad!

I got the majority of my packing done last night. The good thing about packing last minute is I do it. The bad thing is I don't take the time to go through things. There was a file folder on my desk. It was full of scrapbook stuff and other flotsam that didn't have a home LAST time I moved. This time I added to it and re-packed it. I am a firm believer in "a place for everything and everything in it's place". Unfortunately when everything doesn't HAVE a place, it's hard to stick to that motto!

I've realized that I have *a lot* of stuff. At least three boxes of scrapbook stuff...that doesn't include my cart, carryall, album tote, workshop organizer, sticker binder, or three boxes of completed Premier albums. Yi yi yi!

The good news is I managed to squeeze all twelve of my dance overskirts into one fairly small box. I was proud of that.

There is a bittersweet feeling when you go to bed surrounded by boxes with totally blank walls. I haven't actually been in this house long enough to put a lot on the walls but having cleared off all my horizontal spaces makes it feel so empty. I am excited though :)

Tomorrow I get off work at noon and then the moving shall commence. Wish me luck!

~Heidi

Word of the Day #24: bespoke

be·spoke ( P ) Pronunciation Key (b-spk)
v.
Past tense and a past participle of bespeak.

adj.
Custom-made. Said especially of clothes.
Making or selling custom-made clothes: a bespoke tailor.

Most Embarrasing Moment

Okay so Blogger won't register that I was uploading pictures yesterday. If it decides to smarten up I'll let you know.

Yesterday Seth and Robert came over for dinner. Seth gave us an update on his "condition". Remember how Sunday evening he went to the clinic? Well Monday morning he was still very sore so he decided to go see the family doctor. I can't remember if I've mentioned this but our regular family doctor, Dr. W. has pancreatic cancer so the family has been slowly switching over to Dr. B. Seth went in to see Dr. B. and started telling him about what happened. Dr. B. said "Yes, don't you remember me? I was at the clinic last night!!!" Seth said he has NEVER felt so embarrased! Anyways, it was good that he went back because this time Dr. B. ordered x-rays. I haven't heard what the results are on that yet.

~Heidi

Word of the Day #23: islet

is·let ( P ) Pronunciation Key (lt)
n.
A very small island: rocky islets off the coast.

I didn't know they had a seperate name. Cool!
~Heidi

The goat-boys of Whytecliff Park

ETA I'll add pictures later. This is just the text for now.

This weekend Robert was home for the first time since he moved. Saturday he spent the day with Seth catching up with friends. Sunday we had a family day. Church was cancelled this week due to renovations so we packed a picnic and went to Whytecliff Marine Park in West Vancouver. We arrived just after noon and were lucky to find a parking spot. (The last time we went we got a ticket :P)

We found a shady spot on the grass and enjoyed our picnic and then hauled everything back to the car before heading down to the beach. The criteria for finding a spot for the day were: it had to have water (for Dad) and it had to have rocks and places to climb (for the boys). Whytecliff is perfect for the latter. There are lots of cliffs and interesting rock formations for goat-boys to have fun on. One of the best spots is an "islet" (that's my new word of the day) From britishcolumbia.com:

A rocky breakwater leads out to nearby Whyte Islet. At low tide you can clamber up its steep slopes and find a sheltered spot beneath a lone shore pine. Keep one eye on the progress of the tide.

Mom stayed on the shore with our backpacks, towels and swim stuff but Dad, the boys and I "clambered up the steep slopes" all the way to the far point of the islet. It was quite a hike and the first little bit is getting slick because so many people use it. It was beauitful though.

Of course the goat-boys weren't happy to just go tip to tip overland. No, they wanted to go around the bottom. When they realized that wasn't going to work they tried to climb up the side. With proper equipment it *might* have worked. Instead, Seth slipped and fell about five feet. He dislocated his shoulder and scrapped his whole chest up. It was horrible. Dad and I were standing above them cautioning them to be careful (while I took numerous pictures). I actually saw Seth fall, I'm glad Dad didn't. I'm not sure if it was his first aid training or quick thinking but once Seth got his footing under him he grabbed his arm and shoved it back into the socket. N.A.S.T.Y! He is SO skinny and I could see the bone sticking out where it didn't belong. It was sore but functional after that. He wasn't sure how much damage had been done, and judging from the pain that was still there, he decided it would probably be best to go to the hospital.

So, we climbed back over the rocks to the shore, met up with Mom and headed back to the car. Once on the highway we all started brainstorming on where the closest hospital would be. I suggested we just keep driving until we saw the "H" sign posted. It worked :) Lions Gate Hospital wasn't that far away. Of course Canada and their "free healthcare" are down right pathetic. We got into the emergency room and were there for a full fifteen minutes without even being acknowledged, except for by a security guard who told us to stand back.

Seth got tired of waiting (after a mere twenty minutes :P) so he decided we should head home and try the emergency room there. He was thinking that he'd need x-rays. The good thing about being in our hometown is that both of us live about five minutes from the hospital. We dropped him off and took Robert to the house to pick up his car (Robert was going to stay with him). By the time Robert came back and ambulance had arrived with two "stat" victims and a cardiac arrest. Seth decided that he didn't hurt THAT much and went to a walk-in clinic instead. (Don't you love the impatience? :))

The doctor at the clinic checked him out and prescribed ibprofen for the swelling and polysporin for the scratches. He figures that his shoulder is fine and just advised him to not baby it. He'll be sore for awhile but he should be fine.

So there you go. Adventure!!!

I also made major headway in packing yesterday evening. There is something about knowing you are moving in less than a week that makes putting stuff in a box easier. Granted I probably haven't touched half of it since I unpacked it when we moved in November but, what if I need it!!! I also found a bunch of boxes in the garage so that made packing easier too. The main areas I have to tackle now are my desk and the top of my dresser. I'm getting there though.

Friday is the planned official moving day. Of course with Seth being somewhat incapacitated it could be interesting. Oh well, we'll just rely on Aaron lots.

Have a great week!

~Heidi

Hot, Hot, HOT!

37oC

That's hot. Of course I spent most of the day in an overly air conditioned board room (BTW the meeting went fine, much better then I had hoped. Oh, and my boss is away next week so hopefully I can get some stuff accomplished.) Now I am at home and I'm sitting her and sweating. Not actually doing anything but sweating none-the-less. I *should* go downstairs to my room and pack but after not having internet access for 36 hours I have a ton of emails to weed through in my inbox. The weird thing is that as I sit here, they multiply. There are apparently other people sitting at their computer this evening too.

~Heidi

Checking In

Hey Guys,

It's been a crazy busy week getting ready for the board meeting. I'm pretty sure I have everything though...now if I could just get my directors to quit cancelling on me!!! So, I'll be incommunicato for the rest of today and tomorrow. Robert is coming home this weekend so I hope to spend time with him...oh, and I really need to PACK!!!

Hope y'all have a great weekend and for those of you in BC STAY COOL!!!

~Heidi

Coffee on Sunday's

Apparently coffee isn't a big seller on Mondays. I had plans to meet up with a friend of mine at a local coffee shop. I got there at 7pm as planned and found out that there "new" Sunday hours are 11am-7pm. Okaaaaay...well, they're not the only shop in town. Let's try the one down the road. Closed on Sundays. Right. Starbucks. Starbucks has to be open. Drive over there (about five blocks away). They're open alright but they close at eight!!! Pathetic. Anyways we got our coffee "closed" the place and then went for a walk around the lake. It turned out to be a very nice evening but how hard do you have to work just to get coffee???
~Heidi

Hell's Kitchen

Yesterday (Saturday) I went to a CM workshop as planned and did a little bit of scrapbooking. Finished some pages, did my Dierks concert from October and organized some stuff. It finished at 3 so I came home and took over the living room to do a major power layouts for my Pennsylvania trip. There are SO many pictures. It's hard to keep them straight but I'm getting there. I currently have PL guides all over the couch and floor and sticky notes all along the mantel. It's working well :D

Anyhow, while I was doing PL Seth borrowed my car to run errands. He brought it back around 6:30 and we decided that since we were both free and it was a *gorgeous* evening, we'd head into Vancouver and see if we could find somewhere interesting to eat dinner.

Initially we were thinking that something in Yaletown would be good. Of course when you get on Pacific Blvd you can get on and over the Burrard Street Bridge before you know it...or at least I can. That put us on West 4th in Kitsilano. I had been down there for dinner when Jean in Tx came to town so I knew there were lots of restaurants. We decided to drive along and see if something struck our fancy.

What did we choose? Hell's Kitchen Seth had some convoluted reality tv connection for it. I just thought it looked interesting and it was busy, which is always a good thing when it comes to restaurants. It turned out to be a great choice. Exactly what we were looking for.

Instead of each ordering an entree we went 'tapas style' and ordered three appetizers to share: (from the online menu)

DUCK SPRING ROLLS
Smoked Quebec duck breast, shredded carrots & apples with chipotle honey

QUESADILLAS
Grilled zucchini & mixed peppers, fresh basil, mozzarella and goat cheese in a roma tomato tortilla with Hell's salsa

ARTICHOKE & SMOKED GRUYERE FONDUE
Bubbling with spinach, roasted garlic and asiago, served with foccacia and corn meal & chili-dusted Navajo bread

It was all delicious, especially the spring rolls. For dessert we each had:

HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
Dark Belgian chocolate and Frangelico liqueur folded into thick whipped cream with house-made biscotti

Soooo good. We'll definitely go back there.

It was good to spend some time with Seth too. We talked about a few things to do with the new place. Doing dishes, the fact that I use next to NO milk, etc. It's looking like I'll take the bedroom closer to the living room...maybe. That's what he thinks anyways. I still haven't decided.

Anyhoo, hope y'all are having a great weekend :)

~Heidi

Busy Living Life

Not much new to report. I got a call from our manager yesterday and we’ve been “approved” for the apartment. I’m working on coordinating the deposit with Seth right now.

Mom, Dad and Aaron went to Alberta for the weekend for a quasi-family reunion. Robert was going to go with them but he got his dates mixed up and was planning on NEXT weekend. He’s really sad that he can’t go. It will work out though. Hopefully next weekend he can come down and get the rest of his stuff from Seth.

With Mom and Dad being gone it means I’m house sitting two places. Of course at theirs I have the rabbit to deal with :P

Tomorrow I’m going to a workshop hosted by one of my local cmc friends. I need the stress relief. Other then that I’m just busy living life. I did start organizing some stuff yesterday and packing a little bit. I have a lot more to do though.

Have a great weekend!

~Heidi

(almost) Done Deal

I forgive him. Seth that is. For sleeping in. It actually worked out great. I had a big meeting this morning. I had to be at the hotel where it was taking place at 6:30am for set up and then from 8 to noon I took continuous notes. My hand HURTS. It was a very productive morning though. After that my boss gave me the rest of the day off. I have a board meeting next week so it's going to be crazy busy getting ready for that and I needed a break.

Because I was off early I called Seth and picked him up and we went and viewed the aprtment together. He liked it and I filled out my part of the rental application today! WE HAVE A PLACE TO LIVE! Seth will fill out his part of the application tomorrow (he had to go to work) and as soon as we get the deposit $$ together (he gets paid on Friday) we can process the application.

The current tenants move out sometime next week and after the carpets are cleaned and touch ups done we can start moving in (sometime in teh last week of July). Formal posession date is August 1st but we can be there before that.

I'm really happy with the space. It is on the first floor and we look out into the courtyard which has a pool in it! The bedrooms are equal sized with lots of storage space. Question. If you had your choice of the bedroom beside the bathroom or the bedroom beside the living room which would you choose? (They are right beside each other). Keep in mind that Seth showers at 3am when he gets home but the bedroom by the shower has a nice built in shelf in the closet. I'm leaning one way but I haven't decided yet.

Anyhow, it's a big load off my mind to have this in place. Now I have clearance to go scrapping on Saturday (because I won't be house hunting) and I can start packing in earnest. I'll keep you updated on my progress!

~Heidi

30 minutes

I think the longest half hour I ever have to live through is between when I get a flouride treatment and when I'm allowed to eat again. It's not like I'm really hungry but being told that I CAN'T eat makes me want to.

Today I went and got my tooth fixed. It was quite painless. He didn't even have to freeze me. Unfortunately my coverage doesn't include the nice white filling so I have more metal in my mouth but it's okay. It's pretty far back. Once the metallic taste goes away it will be just like new.


Seth slept in today and didn't go see the apartment :( He says he'll do it tomorrow. I hate waiting on other people.

~Heidi

Quick Update

I went and looked at two apartments yesterday. The second one looks like it will work. It’s small but sufficient and there is LOTS of storage space. Seth’s going to look at it today and let me know what he thinks. The funny part is it is about a five minute walk from where he currently lives and for me to get to work it is really quick. Cross your fingers!
~Heidi

Hand Me Downs

So, word got out that I'm moving. I came home from church yesterday with SIX boxes full of kitchen stuff!!! Mom had mentioned it to some of the ladies at church and one of them has a daughter who is moving in with her almost-fiance. They are consolidating two homes, and this lady was doing some cleaning out so I got a bunch of stuff. It's all really well packed, wrapped in paper and plastic bags so I'm not even going to go through it until we get into a place. It looks like some nice stuff though. A bunch of cookware, bakeware, dishes, glassware and other stuff. Anything Seth and I don't want we'll give to Robert.

I have some appointments to view apartments tonight. Let's hope I can come up with something good!

~Heidi

Sunday Morning Quiz

CASEd from SSer Diana

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, find line 4 and write what it says.
The book nearest to me is "The Random House Dictionary of the English Language" Page 18 starts with the definition for "adequate" and line four reads "our needs. 2. barely sufficient or suitable: The violinist"

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can. What can you touch?
Straight out, nothing. If I put it down, the organ stool that we use as a desk return. On it is the newspaper with house listings.

3. What is the last thing you watched on TV?
About ten minutes of a Friends re-run on...Wednesday? Maybe? It's summer. I don't watch tv.

4. Without looking, guess what time it is.
10:45 am

5. Now look at the clock. What is the actual time?
Yeah me! It's 10:48! (and no I didn't look while reading this survey either).

6. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?
Birds chirping and the wind in the trees (the patio door is open) plus water running because Aaron is taking a shower.

7. When did you last step outside? What were you doing?
Last night after I stopped at home to change. I was going back out to see more houses with Seth and then we went and saw Pirates.

8. Before you started this survey, what did you look at?
My hotmail account. I get all blogs that I read emailed to my account through feedblitz so I was reading other blogs (I think it was Martha's right before this one).

9. What are you wearing?
Dark blue denim skirt and an ultra comfy, "at home" floral t-shirt.

10. Did you dream last night?
Yep. I dreamt I was in Liquidation World looking at a display of hot chocolate. They were the smaller canisters then the regular ones we get and I didn't recognize the brand name. The price was $3.99 and I couldn't decide if it was worth it or not. (I told my mom about it this morning and she told my dad "Honey, we should go to Liquidation World!" I had to explain that it was a dream!

I also dreamt that I at a crop and there was a swap that was due that I hadn't even started. I think that's why I went to Liquidation World. Looking for inspiration.

11. When did you last laugh?
Last night at "Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest" and then on the way home when I got to call 911 because there was an outhouse on fire. The latter wasn't AS funny but they caught it early so there was minimal damage. Plus there's something funny about calling your brother at 1:30am (after I had just dropped him off) and saying "FLAMING POO!!!" BTW the police arrived before the fire trucks and put most of it out with the fire extinguisher in their trunk.

12. What is on the walls of the room you are in?
Actually HANGING on the wall, here, only a calendar.

13. Seen anything weird lately?
I was house hunting yesterday. Nuff said!

14. What do you think of this quiz?
It's fun. Different questions. I like quizzes anyways.

15. What is the last film you saw?
Guess. I'll give you one try.
Bonus. Friday it was sold out so we saw "The Devil Wears Prada". Makes me appreciate my job and my boss A LOT!

16. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy?
Clothes!!! I was in a really nice ladies shop yesterday. Gorgeous clothes but WAY out of budget for me. Oh, and then I'd buy a house and a newer car :)

17. Tell me something about you that I don't know.
Who are you? Most of you know everything! The only thing I can think of right now is I'm debating going to a crop on Saturday. If we can find a place, I can go. If not, I have to go house hunting.

18. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?
Poverty, and the attitudes that keep people in that situation

19. Do you like to dance?
Yep! I really like square dancing because I know what the moves are :D

20. Comment to George Bush:
Did you have fun when Kenny came to the White House?
(Seriously, I don't care about his foreign politics. He's a country music fan. I'd talk about that :D)

21. Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?
Girls? I don't want girls :P I don't know. I like the name Hazel but I don't know if I'd use it or not.

22. Imagine your first child is a boy, what do you call him?
Ah, that's more like it. I haven't actually decided on a full name yet. I need his dad's help with that. I want to use "Edward" as a middle name though. It's what my Dad was named at birth. He's gone by Ted ever since though and legally changed it when he got married. It's a nod to my grandmother. The only problem is it IS a vowel, so depending on our last name, I don't want his initials to spell something weird (like mine, HEM)

23. Would you ever consider living abroad?
Yep

24. What do you want God to say to you when you reach the pearly gate?
Not sure what I think He would say but I'm hoping, at the very least, He'll look over His ledger, shake His head and say "Come on in anyway."
Aww Diana that's so cute!
I want him to say "Hi Heidi, we've been waiting for you!"

25. 3 people who must also do this quiz in THEIR blog:
No one MUST do it. Only if you feel you have time :)

House Hunting Report #1

Yesterday evening Seth and I started the great house hunt. He had made some calls and lined up appointments to see some basement suites.

#1 Quite nice. Great landlord, interesting location, very close to work for me, not so for him. Two bedrooms and a "den" (which he'd probably use as a bedroom). Small kitchen and living room

#2 Yellow. Seriously, the whole place was painted a VERY intersting colour. Weird landlord, small bedrooms, large living room and decent kitchen.

#3 A mess because the other people are moving. We think we like this one best because everything is spread out (my bedroom is no where near his and both are down the hall from the kitchen) and there is STORAGE. The only thing I don't like is there is very little natural daylight in there. I will be there in the evenings mostly though so it's not a huge deal.

#4 One bedroom is nice, the other was a broom closet. We both almost laughed out loud when we saw it. Definitely a no.

#5 SMELLED!!! Seth held his breath the whole time we were in there. Plus you enter through the second "bedroom" Not good for someone who works night shift.

#6 Interesting. Good size bedrooms and front room but the kitchen is very, very small and the storage is no-existant.

Today we are hoping to look at apartments. I'll keep you updated!

~Heidi

Okay I have five free seconds before I start my day so I'm going to type up my BIG NEWS.

I'm moving out!

Yup. For real this time. Not just house sitting, actually taking all my stuff from my parents house, getting a roommate and a place of my own.I've been talking about this for what? Two years? Three? A long time anyways. So what's the deal?

Well, Robert moved to Vernon to take over management/ownership of the Dominos there. That leaves Seth without a roommate. Seth works M-T 3pm-1am (or something like that) I work a day shift and half the time I'm not home on the weekends. That means we'll NEVER see each other. It's perfect! Plus we do get along quite well so if we do see each other its okay.

He gave notice to his current landlords that he'll be out by the end of the month. I told Dad the same. Yesterday we started house hunting. We're hoping to go look at some places either this evening or tomorrow. We're looking for either a basement suite (which are VERY popular here) or an apartment/condo. Either works. Obviously with two bedrooms, preferably with two bathrooms and if possible with in suite laundry.

In any case I am very excited. My 25th birthday is at the end of the month and this is Happy Birthday to me :D

~Heidi

Not Dead

Hey Everyone,
I'm not dead, just swamped at work. This weekend will be nuts and next week isn't looking any better. Stay tuned though. I have really, really big news. (Even bigger then being asked to be a director). Some of you are aware of it. I'll write up the details as soon as I get a chance.
~Heidi

Starbucks-to-go

Did you know that you can call your order into Starbucks and then go pick it up? I think they only do it when it’s a big order but it worked well this morning. Some of my co-workers just went on a Starbucks run and picked up 10 drinks. There is nothing like seeing all those pretty white cups when you’ve had a crazy busy morning.
~Heidi...enjoying her non-fat-no-foam (not decaf) latte :)

Canada Day Long Weekend

So that's how you pass a very relaxing long weekend. Saturday was Canada Day so Mom, Dad, Aaron and I went to the Burnaby Village Museum. They had free admission and some different "celebrations". Unfortunately we missed most of the celebrations including the parade so it didn't feel very "Canada Dayish". It was fun to walk around the museum though. It's been YEARS since we've been there and I only remembered bits and pieces of it. There was a couple of on duty Mounties hanging out so I got my picture taken. That's pretty "Canada Day ish" :)

We came home for dinner and hung around trying to keep cool (it's been VERY warm for a few weeks now) and then headed over to Exhibition Park to see the fireworks. Here are some of my favourite shots.

Sunday was pretty low key. Church in the morning and then trying to keep cool. Mom had to go to work (she cleans my old office) so I worked on figuring out which negatives belonged to which pictures. (See my previous post) In studying the negatives I discovered that Costco in all their brilliance had not only missed a few of the shots on the negatives (which they often do), they had also CUT THE NEGATIVE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PICTURE!!! Arrrgh! I called Wal-mart and found out that to get negatives turned into a digital file and burned to a cd is only $3.97 for 120 pictures so I decided to do that. Hopefully I can patch some of the pictures together myself. One of the mangled shots is a close up of Dierks! A picture I didn't even know I had!!! Man I love digital!

Just as I was getting ready to head down to Wal-mart Seth (my brother) called. He had been up visiting Robert in Vernon and on the way back his car died. He was stranded about 2 hours from home. Being the good sister that I am, I decided to go rescue him. Nothing like a summer drive on the Coquihalla :) It was a good trip. I cranked my music and enjoyed the scenery and was home in under five hours.

Monday Dad had to work so Mom, Aaron and I went out and explored some trails. We ended up on a service road that took us a-r-o-u-n-d a new development (Auguston). It was a rather boring trip but it was a good work out. Of course Aaron wasn't too impressed with having to walk that far but he suffered in silence :)

Yesterday evening after dinner (and a nap) Mom, Dad and I went out to White Rock and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Mom and I had books and we sat on a blanket on the grass and read while Dad walked out to the pier. Afterwards we had ice cream and then came home.

So it was a busy weekend in some ways but very relaxing in others. Quiet enjoyable.

Today (Tuesday) I start work at 1pm because my boss and I are doing a filing day and we don't want to be interupted. We start at one and go until whenever we are finished.

Happy 4th of July to all my American friends and Happy (belated) Canada Day to my Canadian friends!

~Heidi

treasure hunt

Get this. Due to Diane’s influence, I’ve been planning on doing a 7x7 album of all the concerts I’ve been to. I even have a bright snap pack just waiting for it. My only stumbling block was that I needed to go back through a few years worth of negatives to find the ones I needed so I could make copies and start the book. A few days ago I finally got inspired to start looking. Of course *I* didn’t find anything. I left it with Mom (who has been organizing pictures and negatives on and off for the past few years).

Today when I got home from work she announced that she had found two of the four sets of negatives that I was looking for. After dinner we worked together and with some major brainstorming, came up with another set. The fourth set was eluding me though. I found the first half of the concert but not the shot I had in mind. One I’ve already scrapbooked so I *know* I have it. Why couldn’t I find it? Then off the cuff Mom asks:

“Are you sure YOU took that photo? Maybe it was from Melissa’s camera.”

Me: “uh oh. That’s not funny!”

She’s right. It was on Melissa’s camera. Luckily I have a disk of the pictures…now to find the disk…

~Heidi

Car wash

I washed my car tonight. The first time it has been washed in *months*. I hate doing it but it certainly looks better. Now, if I'm smart, I'll learn to just go through the drive through car wash. Then the dirt won't build up so bad!!!

I'm pretty proud that I finally did it though.

~Heidi

Leann Rimes Concert Pictures

As promised, I finally got these uploaded. I took WAY more then I thought I did but these are the best. Enjoy! clicky
~Heidi

Leann Rimes & Adam Gregory

Are you tired of concert reviews yet? I hope not cause I’ve got another one. :D Saturday was neat because there were so many big name artists there but there is something to be said about a smaller venue. The Plaza of Nations is right on False Creek in Vancouver and Tuesday was a perfect day for a (mostly) outdoor concert.

I left work at 4:30 like normal and ran home and changed. Then I went to the video store to pick up my tickets (it is owned by the same company as the radio station so it's really convenient). They were a bit confused there with who was supposed to get what and I ended up getting both my tickets AND Adam Gregory's brand new cd!

After that I picked up my co-worker and we headed into Vancouver. Traffic was a bit goofy but we made good time. We parked and then had to wait in the LONGEST line I have EVER seen. It only took about 45 minutes to get through the doors though. The good news was that even though the tickets said "Doors open at 6:30" Damian Marshall (the first act) didn't take the stage until just as we were walking through the gate.

Damian Marshall is a fairly new Canadian artist who is getting good airplay in Vancouver. His current singles include: "Where I'm Running From", "Where I'm Running From" and "I Know What Love Is". I am familiar with him from the radio so it was neat to see him live. He played a short set that included a cover of Gary Allan's "Right Where I Need To Be" and was only backed up by another guitar but it was good.

Adam Gregory, who came on next, is another Canadian artist. He released his first cd at 14! It's been fun watching him grow up, and grow up he has! I've listened to his music for years but this was the first time I've had the opportunity to see him live. He was fantastic...of course, being close to the stage makes a HUGE difference. He did really well though. Great interaction with the crowd, excellent stage presence and a good voice. Plus you could tell he was having a lot of fun. He did a bunch of songs from his new cd including: "Get It On", "Really Love Someone", "Get Your Boots On" (my new favourite party song), "She's So California", "Twister Girl", and "Invitation" He also did his very first single "Horseshoes", as well as "The World Could Use a Cowboy", "Could Have Fooled Me", "When I Leave This House" and others.

Adam did a great job of getting the crowd fired up and by the time Leann Rimes came on we were ready to rock. She didn't disappoint either. She opened with "Somethings Gotta Give" and quickly moved through (in no particular order) "Big Deal", "I Need You", "Blue" "One Way Ticket Beacause I Can" and "Commitment" as well as her newer songs like "Some People", "I Want to With You", "Nothin' 'Bout Love Makes Sense" and "Can't Fight the Moonlight".

Leann has an AMAZING voice. It is SO strong and she really used the opportunity to showcase it. It was fantastic. She was very confident on stage, and you could tell she was at home there. It is obvious that she’s been in the business for a long time.

Leann is another artist who I have watched grow up. She’s a little over a year younger then me and she also started her career at a very young age. Lately she’s been focusing more on her pop career and she just released a pop record in the UK. I’m looking forward to the country album she has scheduled for release later this year.

As well as her own material, Leann also did a Janis Joplin song. It was really neat to see her do “other” stuff and while I wasn’t familiar with the song, it sounded really good and the crowd loved it. Her encore was “Probably Wouldn’t Be This Way” and “How Do I Live”.

I’m really glad I was able to see all three artists. It was a fun night. I paid for it the next day though. I was SO tired. My co-worker is still getting her voice back too.

I (again) took lots of pictures. I’ll try and post them in the next few days.

~Heidi

Word of the Day #22: kern

kern ( P ) Pronunciation Key (kûrn) Printing n.
The portion of a typeface that projects beyond the body or shank of a character.tr.v. kerned, kern·ing, kerns
To provide (type) with a kern.
To adjust space between (characters) in typeset text.

kerning
The process of reducing the spacing between certainpairs of letters to improve their appearance. When a fontis created, each character is given a width that includessome space around it so that the letters don't run into eachother when displayed or printed. This can be thought of as aninvisible box around each character. Some pairs of characterssuch as A and V, look better if the boxes overlap slightly,bringing the characters closer together (but still not touching).

“It’s a GREAT morning in the country!!!”

You bet it is. Good thing I made a point of finishing my reviews from Saturday. Guess what I’m doing to night?

Going to the Leann Rimes concert!!!

I won tickets this morning :D The same station that gave me my Dierks tickets in October has been giving away tickets for the Leann Rimes/Adam Gregory concert at Plaza of Nations in Vancouver. Considering I just got back from the huge concert in Seattle, I couldn’t justify buying tickets. I decided that if I could win them, I’d go. I have tried calling in a few times. Last week, at different times I was caller three, four and five (out of seven). Yesterday I was caller five again. This morning they played a game called “password”. You know the word, the DJ knows the word, the news guy doesn’t know the word. You have to make the news guy say the word. For me it was “Rimes”. No one ever looses though. It was awesome :D

So, I pick my tickets up after work and head out to Vancouver!!!!

Stay tuned for ANOTHER concert review!

BTW I’m taking one of my co-workers. She’s a big Leann Rimes fan and she put up with my hourly “Countdown to Kenny” last week so she deserves it. Plus I know we’ll have a ton of fun.

~Heidi

Seattle Concert Pictures

As previously mentioned we were way up in the nosebleed section. Section 311, Row U, Seats 19-21. Get this though. I was sitting there before the concert started playing with my camera trying to figure out how to turn off auto flash. Guess what I figured out how to turn ON? My DIGITAL ZOOM!!!!!!!!! I have had this camera for what? 15 months? And up until now I have only been using the 4x optical zoom. I *knew* it had digital, I just didn’t realize that I hadn’t turned it on! What a great place to discover it though :D

The thing with digital zoom is the camera has to be absolutely still or it will be fuzzy... it also helps if your subject is still. With Kenny it was next to impossible to get a clear shot. I did better with the rest of them. They are very far away, but at least I have some. Have fun looking!

BTW I'm having problems deciding which site is best to share the photos from. I'll be posting the link on the Dierks Fan Club board so I don't really want them in my image event site. York Photo is very similar to Snapfish. I learned about it through mypoints. You may have to create an account to be able to view them. If you really don't want to, you can log in under me: agent713@hotmail.com password: concert.

Now let's hope this works! Seattle Concert Pictures

Kenny Chesney

Just a quick note on the logistics of the stage. As you’ll see in the pictures (when I figure out how I want to share them), it was HUGE. 50 feet high I think someone said? Each performer’s equipment was set up on it and as each finished their set, they just removed their stuff. That meant that Blaine had a little strip of maybe 5 feet back to work in, Dierks was twice that etc. etc. After Gretchen finished her set they unfurled these large banners (I think that’s what they are classified as) so they could set up without being seen.

As you know I joined the Dierks Bentley fan club in Mid March, just before tickets went on sale for this concert. Ever since I have been reading reviews as they were posted so I knew a lot of what to expect. For example, I knew that Dierks would sing “Free & Easy” and the bluegrass version of “My Last Name”. I also knew that Kenny would open with “Summertime” and that he WOULDN’T be on the main stage. What I couldn’t figure out was where he’d be. At other concerts, including the one that Diane went to, everything was in doors. At a lot of them he shows up on a small stage on the second level and then hitches a ride on a swing type thing which delivers him to the stage. Qwest is open air so he didn’t have that option. There was a smallish stage type thing on the field behind the sound booth. I figured it was just related to the sound equipment but the whole day I kept eyeing it thinking it *might* be where he came out. Sure enough, when the music started, the stage rose up another four feet or so, then a trap door opened and Kenny rose up on a platform from inside the stage. SO cool! The lady in front of us was looking at the main stage going “Where is he????” so my friend tapped her on the shoulder and pointed :D

After finishing “Summertime” he came down a little flight of stairs and ran THROUGH THE CROWD!!! They freaked. It was pretty cool :) Of course there were a billion body guards around him but it was still really neat.

From there he made it up onto the stage and proceed to blow. me. away.

OMFSM. After sitting in the hot sun on a not particularly comfortable stadium chair for so long I was getting pretty tired. Kenny was everything I had hoped for though. He sang a bunch of songs, including all the ones I wanted to hear and even brought Uncle Cracker out for “When the Sun Goes Down”. That was *very* exciting for Crystal :)

Seriously though, that man has SO much energy. I can see why he is the reigning entertainer of the year. He *totally* deserves it. His interaction with the audience was awesome and you could tell he was just really happy to be there. I’d love to be closer next time but this was good.

He finished with "How Forever Feels" (my favourite Kenny song) and then came back out for an encore. Jenna asked "is there anything major he hasn't done yet?" I explained that he *always* finishes with "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" and that Dierks usually comes out to sing with him. I was crossing my fingers that he would. When Kenny came back out he was alone. He walked all the way to the end of the stage and with just him and the microphone and a single spotlight sang "Who You'd Be Today" (guess I forgot about that one). Then the stage exploded with lights and Dierks and John Rich came out for Tractor :D Dierks had changed into jeans and put a ball cap on and was clinging to his beer but they sounded awesome and you could tell they were having a ton of fun. When the song was done they all stayed and signed autographs and someone brought out a guitar that they all signed. Then Kenny picked a little girl out of the crowd, brought her up on stage and presented her with it. Very, very cool.

Regarding the sound, it still sucked but having over 40,000 people sing along made the words easier to hear LOL. I was telling my co-worker about the concert this morning and I realized that for this event, the music wasn’t really the reason I was there. I mean I *know* it. Inside out and backwards. I know the words, I know the story behind a lot of the songs, I know how they preformed on the charts etc. etc. For me, the point of going to this concert was to SEE the performers and the show and how they interacted with the audience. I guess that’s a good thing that I wasn’t as focused on the music so it didn’t bug me that bad.

So yeah, it was definitely worth the trip. Would I go see Big & Rich and Gretchen again? Probably not. Do I want to see Blaine again? Yes, in a smaller setting. Would I pay to see Kenny again? Heck yeah, but I want to be closer to the stage. And Dierks? Well, lets just say that January can’t come soon enough. Actually they are saying he’ll be at the Everett Events Center on December 1st. Road trip anybody? :D

~Heidi…off to figure out how best to share pictures…

Gretchen Wilson

Gretchen wasn’t much better then Big & Rich. A lot of the fans on Dierks’ message board are upset that he wasn’t right before Kenny. That is what I had expected would have happened and it would have been MUCH better for the show. Gretchen was okay. She does have a good voice and she did get the crowd pretty excited. I’ve been listening to her latest cd for the past few days so I was familiar with the songs that aren’t singles (like “Skoal Ring”) and her brand new single “California Girls”. As an entertainer though, she was just down right boring. Strutting back and forth across the stage and constantly playing with her hair. She did an acoutstic set which I’m sure was interesting but because the sound was so bad and the echo was so loud, most of it passed right over my head. I was glad when she finished.

Big & Rich

There is so much that could be said about Big & Rich but I’ll try to keep it short. As a general rule, I’m not a fan of their music. Sure “Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy” is a fun rockin’ party song but it’s not something I’d buy on a cd. I was interested to see them in concert simply because they are SO off the wall and get a lot of press. I can’t say I was “wowed” though. Their stage show is very high energy and it fits their music but neither are my style. They brought “Cowboy Troy” and “Two Foot Fred” out which was kind of neat. During “8th of November” they had a few local veterans on the stage as well.

Overall I was pretty bored, especially after Dierks’ awesome performance. The sun was setting during Big & Rich’s stage time and I forgot my hat in the car so if I wanted to see them, I had to hold my hand up to shield my eyes. That got old really fast :P I actually took a bathroom break during their show and I don’t feel like I missed anything. Sorry to any B&R fans out there but I can’t say very much good about them. Oh, and John Rich smashing the guitar at the end was just weird. Total waste of a good guitar.

Dierks Bentley

Dierks, on the other hand, was amazing. Even from SOOOO far away. As you know I’ve seen him twice now. Once when he opened for George Strait in Vancouver when he was still a relative nobody. At that show I was impressed with his energy and how he interacted with the crowd. In October he was …I’m struggling with an adjective for how good that show was. It was at the Commodore in Vancouver. Maybe it was the small intimate venue, maybe it was the fact that everyone was there to see him, maybe it was that I was right beside the stage for the whole night. In any case that show is currently, hands down, the best one I’ve been to yet. BUT in the past almost seven months, Dierks has punched his show up with a TON of energy. Touring with Kenny has rubbed off in a great way. He OWNED that stage! Moving all over, totally reving up the crowd (if you could call it that considering the stadium was FAR from full) and doing flat out amazing. Again, I really couldn’t hear the words or him speaking so I didn’t get as much from it as I could have. The music to his new song “Free & Easy” (which I’ve heard a lot about on the fan club message board) sounded good but I still don’t know what the lyrics are. From what I got the bluegrass version of “My Last Name” was good but I know I missed out on a lot.

Having seen him from so close in October really helped me to enjoy his show that much better. Even though he was really far away, I KNOW what he looks like up close and seeing him live again really brought back those awesome memories. I can’t wait until he comes to Vancouver in January!

On that note, It's almost 11 and my boss gets back from a week away tomorrow so I need to go to bed. I'll finish my reviews tomorrow or as soon as I can. I do have pictures uploaded. I'll figure out how to link them tomorrow.

~Heidi

Blaine Larsen

I am a *really* big Blaine Larsen fan so seeing him was a priority for me. For those of you who aren’t familiar with him, Blaine is a 20 year old singer/songwriter from Buckley, Washington (down by Tacoma somewhere) He released his first cd “Off to Join the World” while he was still in high school. The two singles from it “The Best Man” and “How Do You Get That Lonely” get great airplay in Vancouver and the Pacific Northwest (not too sure about the rest of the country). His sophomore album “Rockin’ You Tonight” was released a week and a half ago. Both cd’s have awesome songs from a very talented young man. Blaine did well on stage but he was definitely out of his element. Even though he has two cd’s out already he has a long way to go before he can be comfortable on a stage that size in a venue that big.

I’d love to see him again in a smaller setting. I think he’d do a lot better. The fact that he was the first of five acts, and that a lot of people hadn’t arrived yet had something to do with it but I think he’s just too fresh.

He has been on tour with Gretchen Wilson (as part of the Redneck Revolution tour) but I don’t know if that has been a good fit for him. Anyways, good but not great.

Stay tuned, Dierks review is next :D

Pre-Concert Ramble

::WARNING:: this is VERY long...in fact I've decided to split it up. This is all the stuff leading UP to the concert. If you want to hear my review of individual acts, they will come later.
...................................................

Wow. What a weekend. I’ll see if I can capture the whole thing (remembering that one of my reasons for blogging is so that I’ll have built in journaling when the time comes for me to scrapbook this event).

Friday night I went to Janis’ because all my casual clothes were there and I hadn’t decided what to wear. (BTW Janis I didn’t get a chance to check what you referenced in the email but I will). Saturday morning the sun woke me up at 6 and I just got up. I realized there was NO way I was going back to sleep so I didn’t even try. I cleaned my purse out, ate breakfast and took my sweet time getting ready. I then went and picked my friend Crystal up. I had to wait for her to finish getting ready but by the time she was, Jenna was good to go. We were on the road by about 9:45 am. It took forever to get across the border but once we were, it was smooth sailing.

BTW, Jenna is my concert buddy. She was with me the first two times I saw Dierks and she bought me tickets to Brad Paisley for the concert in January as my Christmas present. Crystal is another friend from high school and a fairly new country music convert.

Getting into Bellvue (where our hotel was) wasn’t a problem. FINDING it was another story. I kind of did some concentric circles, slowly zeroing in on it before I finally located it. My co-pilot isn’t a great map reader ;) and I relied too much on my own sense of direction – not that anyone who reads this would know anything about THAT :D

The hotel had issues with allowing us an early check in because the room hadn’t been cleaned yet. I had to hammer it into her head that I didn’t need to GO INTO the room, all I wanted was the key so I didn’t have to deal with her after the concert! She finally figured it out and we were on our way to Qwest Field. Luckily the 405(?) from Bellvue to Seattle goes RIGHT to Qwest. That was a blessing. Finding parking was a bit interesting. At Qwest was $25. Umm…no thank you. We decided to drive a few blocks and see if we could find anything cheaper.

A block from Qwest we passed the Pyramid Brewery. I had made plans to meet up there with one of Darrcie’s downline. A girl named Tonya who is a huge country music fan like me. We had both been talking about the concert while at the retreat on Lopez Island and she emailed me a few weeks back to see if we wanted to hook up and go for a meal before the concert. It worked well for me since I knew we’d want to eat but I don’t know downtown Seattle very well and it was nice to have a reference.

So, back to the story. Passed Pyramid Brewery, turned left, found a parking garage that was only charging $15. Still expensive but that was doable. Turn in and I hear someone calling my name. Tonya was standing on the sidewalk!!! They had parked at the same place. It was amazing timing. It was funny, her friend Mary, and her brother John were like “who are you yelling at?” and my friends were like “who is that???” both of us said “The person we are meeting up with!!!”

It worked out perfectly. We were able to walk to the restaurant together and then wait together. That place is POPULAR! We waited for about a half and hour before we even got a spot at the bar (which is part of the waiting area) and we ended up just eating there. The food was good. I would love to go back there on a non-event day.

We got to Qwest Field at just past four. After a bathroom break we walked up a VERY long ramp to the 300 level. Being up that hig, the sound was horrible. Especially for Blaine and it wasn't much better for Dierks. It was REALLY hard to hear the words to the songs and if they were just speaking you pretty much couldn't make out what they said. Someone behind us said that it was an experiment for Qwest to put people in the upper level for concerts so we were guinea pigs. News flash for Qwest, their experiment failed. :(

That said, the day was amazing. We chose to enjoy it and had a great time. Jenna described it as a "concert marathon" and I had to agree. It was a VERY long day. Blaine Larsen, the first act, took the stage around 4:30. Kenny didn’t come on until after 9 pm!!!

We were on the East side of the field so we got the benefit of the full blazing sun. Some people in the Dierks fan club have mentioned that they got sunburned and I was very surprised that we didn’t. It was SO hot. One of the benefits of being up that high was that there was a nice breeze but it was still crazy. We kept chanting “When the sun goes down…” trying to will it down out of our line of sight :)

Stay tuned...

SO excited

EEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

You have NO idea how hard it is for me to sit here at my desk and pretend to work. In 25 hours and 15 minutes I will be at THE concert :D I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dierks’ new single “Every Mile A Memory” will be released to radio on Tuesday. They posted it for the fan club today and I’ve had it on repeat. Awesome, awesome, awesome!

I. can’t. wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I haven’t entirely decided what to wear and I have things to do this evening (pack) to get ready but it’s okay. It will help me pass the time.

~Heidi…SO excited!

Word of the Day #21: ameliorate

a·mel·io·rate ( P ) Pronunciation Key (-mly-rt)
tr. & intr.v. a·me·lio·rat·ed, a·me·lio·rat·ing, a·me·lio·rates
To make or become better; improve. See Synonyms at improve.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Alteration of meliorate.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
a·melio·ra·ble (-r-bl) adj.
a·melio·rative adj.
a·melio·rator n.

mel·io·rate ( P ) Pronunciation Key (mly-rt, ml--)
v. mel·io·rat·ed, mel·io·rat·ing, mel·io·rates
v. tr.
To make better; improve.

v. intr.
To grow better.

panhandlers

Last night was my third session of the writing class I’m taking. I parked beside SteamWorks (for those of you that know Vancouver) like I normally do. When I went to pay for parking I was approached by a panhandler. Now it should be known that I don’t like giving anyone money just because they ask for it. Never have. Normally I just say “sorry I don’t have any” which is usually the truth. That’s what I said yesterday…while flashing my Visa. You have to admit, it is pretty smart to ask people for spare change while they are pumping a machine with it. Oh, and his opening line was “is it [the machine] working for you?” Because the first time I put my card into the machine it didn’t read it. That’s brilliant too, offering to help so that they feel grateful and then want to give you money.

Anyhow, he asked if the machine was working, which it did the second time thankyouverymuch. Then he asked for money. When I refused he added “I’m homeless and I’m just trying to get money for food”. Sorry. Doesn’t work on me. I went back to my car to put the parking receipt “face up on the dashboard” and grab my books. I also grabbed the apple that I had been planning on having for a snack. I went back over to him and said “I don’t have any money but you’re welcome to this apple”. He gratefully accepted it and immediately started eating it.

It was interesting. I still refuse to give them money but I might be inclined to carry more apples with me.

~Heidi

Word of the Day #20: mollify

mol·li·fy ( P ) Pronunciation Key (ml-f)
tr.v. mol·li·fied, mol·li·fy·ing, mol·li·fies
To calm in temper or feeling; soothe. See Synonyms at pacify.
To lessen in intensity; temper.
To reduce the rigidity of; soften.

What do you call lip gloss for a car?

What do you call lip gloss for a car?


Answer:






Wait for it...








AUTO BALM

LOL that is courtesy of my boss who is out of town this week. Sorry I haven't blogged much lately. I'm working on an entry from my weekend but I want to include pictures so it's taking awhile. Right now I'm just focusing on working through my lengthy to do list and blogging is taking a lower priority.

Hope all is well with you.

~Heidi

Honestly

1. Honestly, what color is your underwear?
Today? Boring white cotton. Yesterday? Lime Green cotton

2. Honestly, what's on your mind right now?
I *really* should be working

3. Honestly, what are you doing right now?
not working

4. Honestly, do you think you are attractive?
Yep, in my own way

5. Honestly, do you watch disney channel?
Might if I had it. I try to limit my tv though

6. Honestly, are you jealous of someone right now?
yes but not enough to let it bother me

7. Honestly, do you bite your nails?
I used to but I can honestly say that I’ve gotten over it. They actually look pretty dang good right now!

8. Honestly, what is your mood right now?
tired because it’s Friday and the end of a VERY long week.
Happy because it’s Friday and the end of a VERY long week.
Relieved because…you get the picture…

9. Honestly, have you had an eating disorder?
Does eating too much count?

10. Honestly, do you want to see someone this very minute?
Sure!

11. Honestly, do you have a friend you don't actually like?
LOL yes

12. Honestly, are you loyal?
I certainly try to be

13. Honestly, are you in denial?
Unfortunately

14. Honestly, where would you rather be right now?
On vacation. Anywhere.

15. Honestly, do you like someone?
no

16. Honestly, does anyone like you?
I like to think so

17. Honestly, is it going anywhere with them?
N/A!

Canadian Girl

This picture was taken on Mothers Day. We had a picninc by the river and Dad brought a Dairy Queen ice cream cake. Since we don't have a thermos big enough for coffee for the family he also did a Tim Hortons run. I thought all the cups together looked pretty cool.

Sorry I haven't been blogging much this week. I've been b.u.s.y. My boss is away next week though so hopefully I'll have time to get caught up on work stuff and to brain strom some interesting entries.

Have a great weekend!

~Heidi

3 Month Review

As previously mentioned, I had my three month review today. It went really well. The process is that I fill out a self evaluation form, my boss fills one out and we discuss our findings. Over all we were pretty similar but she rated me higher on some stuff. That was partially due to me not understanding the questions and partially because I was a bit hard on myself because I know I am capable of more. She is quite pleased though. It was nice to get the positive feedback. We discussed some ways in which I can improve and some action steps I can take. I wasn't nervous at all and there were no surprises.

When I got back from lunch there was a beautiful gerber daisy in my inbox. A gift from one of my co-workers as a "welcome (permanently) to the team" :)

~Heidi

Word of the Day #19: correspondence

cor•re•spon•dence P Pronunciation Key (kôr -sp n d ns, k r -)
n.
1. The act, fact, or state of agreeing or conforming.
2. Similarity or analogy.
3.
a. Communication by the exchange of letters.
b. The letters written or received.

The third one is what applies to me daily. I frequently have to write this word out and for the longest time I spelled it correspondAnce. I finally sat down and figured out that there is no dancing in correspondEnce. :D

~Heidi

Spiders

I don’t like spiders but they don’t freak me out like some people. Good thing too. My bathroom is right next to my bedroom in the basement. There are creepy crawly things around. I know this. Usually I see them and just shrug it off.

This morning when I stepped into the shower I was greeted with the nasty sight of a fairly large spider. Including legs he was probably an inch in diameter, he was one of the ones with a big body though. Okay everyone together now, ::collective shudder:: Like I said, they don’t bother me that bad but there is something about standing there, naked and having to attack a spider. Blech! I did capture him, with a piece of toilet paper and dropped him in the toilet.

That’s not all. When I got OUT of the shower, there was a very small slimy thing slithering across the floor. A centipede type thing. He went into the toilet too.

Oh, and don’t get me started on the ants.

I think I’m going to move into Janis’ permanently!!!

~Heidi…master bug hunter…

Word of the Day #18: efficient

ef·fi·cient ( P ) Pronunciation Key (-fshnt)
adj.
Acting directly to produce an effect: an efficient cause. See Synonyms at effective.

Acting or producing effectively with a minimum of waste, expense, or unnecessary effort.
Exhibiting a high ratio of output to input.


I scheduled my three month review for Thursday...which is coincidently my actual three month anniversary.

I don't feel very efficient today. Maybe it will get better as the week goes on...

~Heidi

A little R&R

It's Sunday afternoon and I just realized I haven't blogged in awhile. Nothing exciting to report I guess. I took Friday afternoon off to liquidate some overtime and to give me a sanity break. I came home and did some stuff on the computer and then headed out to Janis'. My goal was to do power layouts. Before I could I had to clear off the table from my scrapbooking and card making supplies. Let's just say it took awhile :P I did get my PL done and yesterday I joined Sue and a few other people at Deb's house for a full day of scrapbooking. I got quite a few pages done and finished up some swaps that are due this week. It was a very successful day.

This morning I slept in an then hung around Janis', ate breakfast, did some journalling and read a bit before coming home. Right now I'm listening to a thunder shower while I wait for dinner. We have an evening church service and then who knows what is happening this evening.

Hope y'all have had as relaxing a weekend as I have had.

~Heidi

Word of the Day #17: heuristic

heu·ris·tic ( P ) Pronunciation Key (hy-rstk)
adj.
Of or relating to a usually speculative formulation serving as a guide in the investigation or solution of a problem: “The historian discovers the past by the judicious use of such a heuristic device as the ‘ideal type’” (Karl J. Weintraub).
Of or constituting an educational method in which learning takes place through discoveries that result from investigations made by the student.
Computer Science. Relating to or using a problem-solving technique in which the most appropriate solution of several found by alternative methods is selected at successive stages of a program for use in the next step of the program.

n.
A heuristic method or process.
heuristics (used with a sing. verb) The study and application of heuristic methods and processes.


I started my writing course yesterday. It took almost as long to get to the campus as it did for the course but that's okay. It was a nice day for a drive.

I really enjoyed my first session and I'm looking forward to the rest of them. Our instructor "Tom" is very personable and he makes the topic matter quite interesting. We covered a varitety of items including writing process, critical and creative thinking skills, grammer and puncuation.

Get this. The eternal question for Canadians is how to punctuate the following:

a b and c

do you do it: a, b, and c. or a, b and c?

Apparently the former is American (and how Microsoft likes to see it) and the latter is British. I have struggled with this for a long time so I was interested to hear his take on it. He concluded that we would be better off doing "a, b, and c." The American way. His reasoning is that it is more consistent and clearer. For example if you say "After class I'm going out for beer, rum and coke, and wiskey." That second comma groups the rum and coke together. I don't know if it makes sense here but he did last night. There were lots of other great tips too.

It has been a *long* time since I have been in a classroom setting and even longer since I've studied grammer and punctuation so I am overdue.

Now to get going on the assignments...

~Heidi

Chai Blended Crème

The Starbucks website describes it as follows:

Tazo® Chai Frappuccino® Blended Crème
A unique and spicy-sweet blend of Tazo® Chai and milk blended with ice to creamy perfection and topped with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Finally, I can enjoy the taste of chai on hot days too. Today I had the Chai Blended Crème. Blended Crème is like a frappacino but there is no coffee in it. It was yummy! Slightly heavy tasting because it is Chai (I had originally gone in for something light and fruity) but it was quiet tasty and not nearly as sweet as the Coconut Mocha Frap’s I’ve been drinking. I’ll definitely have that again.

I do need to remember to ask for it with no whip though. Whip adds FIFTEEN and HALF GRAMS OF FAT!!! OMFSM! Glad I enjoyed it today cause I won't be having it that way again!

~Heidi

Mutts

One of my very favourite comic strips is Mutts I get it delivered to my inbox daily (along with Dilbert). The series that Mutts just ran called "Animal Idol" was so cute that I have to share it :) Enjoy!!!
~Heidi

Fly Hunt

Man I wish I could draw! Our receptionist is currently on a fly hunt.

Picture this. A fairly tall heavy set girl with shoulder length wavy blonde hair armed with a bubble gum pink fly swatter, in the shape of a flower, racing around an office in an effort to rid the world of flying insects. Oh, now she’s talking to it, “C’mon, you know your fate. Take it like a man!!!”

It’s a funny site that would look awesome immortalized as a caricature :D

~Heidi

My Big News

Last Monday in my “What Could Have Been” post, I alluded to the fact that I had some “big news”. I wasn’t ready to post at the time because I was waiting for confirmation and a clearer timeline. Yesterday I got it.

Remember in the previous post how I had stopped by my old office and was kind of sad that I wasn’t part of that organization any more? Well the very next day (Saturday, May 27th) I stopped off at the Farmers’ Market downtown. (Something which I helped launch while at my old job) Lots of local “movers and shakers” were there since it was the first day of the season and the “official opening”.

I was chatting with another of my co-workers when my old boss approached us. He greeted us and then said “Heidi, I’m glad you are here. I have a proposition for you. Would you be interested in sitting on our Board of Directors?”

My immediate reaction was “Heck yeah!” but of course I had to play it cool and be professional. I had to check with my boss to make sure she was okay with the time commitment it would involve and he has to pass it through the nominating committee and get board approval.

How cool is that though? Two months after I finish working for them I’m invited to sit on the Board! This is how I can be involved. I am very excited :D

The nominating committee/board process will probably take a little while. Currently the Board is made up of seven men. There are a few reasons my ex-boss is nominating me for the position.
1. I’m a woman, and they’ve always had problems with female membership.
2. I’m a “youth” (anything under 29 is considered a youth) and they need “fresh blood”
3. I’ve been around for a long time and he likes my input, my point of view and my experience.

I told my mom, that since I won’t work for pay, he wants me to work for free :D
Anyways, I am very flattered to be asked and I am excited to continue on with this organization while still keeping my day job.

Oh, and the Tuesday after I was approached regarding the board position I got a phone call. This one was from one of the references I had used to get my current job. I sit on a task force committee for a local organization that she is the staff contact for. She asked “are you working FULL time?” When I replied that I was she said “That’s too bad. My part time assistant just accepted a full time position at another organization and I would have liked to talk to you about filling this one”!

Talk about good for the ego. I need it though. I’ve got my three month review coming up soon. Wish me luck!!!

~Heidi

Rally Weekend

This weekend was “Rally in the Valley”. The annual event that my square dance club hosts. I missed it last year because it was the same weekend as my parents twenty-fifth wedding anniversary so I was determined to go this year. I’m really glad I did.

It was a LOT of dancing, especially since we’ve been off since mid April but it was a blast. It started Friday evening with a “Trail in Dance”. Square dancing is a way of life for a lot of people. You can pretty much hop in your RV and just go from festival to festival all across the country. If you do that for a few years in a row, you end up making friends and then the next time you come back it’s just like a big reunion. The hall where my club dances is actually part of a school and it is right beside a ball diamond and playing field. By Friday evening there were almost three dozen RV’s parked out there! In all we had around 130 people attend, which is actually pretty small for an event like this but it was a comfortable size for our hall.

Friday night our resident caller, Bill, was on duty. It was a really fun dance and I even managed to get my parents to come out and watch! I’ve been dancing for a year and a half and they have never seen me. I prepped them for this event by talking about it a lot in the weeks leading up to it and when I left on Friday I made them promise to come. They only stayed for a half hour or so but the point is THEY CAME and that was HUGE for me.

Saturday we started with a continental breakfast and then had a morning “pajama dance”. After that I had a few hours to kill so I hit some scrapbooking stores and wandered the mall for a bit. In the afternoon we had a “plus” workshop and a “rounds” workshop. When you start dancing, you are at the “basic” level. Within a year you can move up to “Mainstream” over time you learn “plus” moves. As of our last practice in April I have officially done all of the “plus” moves. I’m far from dancing at that level consistently though so it was good to practice. Plus it gave me a chance to get to know the guest caller, Brent. The rounds workshop was WAY over my head. We only just started a bit of it this year so I am very, very basic on it. It was fun to watch though.

Saturday evening we had a potluck dinner (which was YUMMY :)) and then the Saturday night dance. Very, very fun. I got home around 11 but of course it takes awhile to unwind so I probably fell asleep around midnight.

Sunday I was up at 7:30 and headed back out for a pancake breakfast and another morning dance. (BTW, the hall where I dance is about 20 minutes from my house so it was a fair bit of back and forth). After that I headed back home and went to church and then went BACK out, this time all the way to Minter Gardens. The weather was really crummy but there were some tents up and we had free admission into the gardens. We danced for about an hour and a half and then everyone packed up and went home. I took the opportunity to wander the gardens a bit. If I remember I’ll try and upload some pictures. I haven’t been out there in probably 15 years so it was really nice.

Sunday afternoon I had plans to meet up with my friend Terri for dinner. I want to give a quick shout out to her too. I don’t dwell on who does or doesn’t read my blog but I have to say, it is nice to hear someone say “Yes, I heard about that. I read your blog!!!” Terri does it often. Thanks Terri :D BTW, I still don’t have your cell number… ;)

After dinner I headed home and met up with my family and we went and saw the Davinci Code. I’ll put my review of that in a separate post.

So, as you can see, it was a busy weekend!!! This week is shaping up to be crazy too. My plans for tonight are to head out to Janis’ for a quiet evening and go to bed early!

~Heidi

TIA vs. TPA

What the…???

I just searched for a flight from Vancouver to what I thought was Tampa Bay, FL. They are quoting it at over eight thousand dollars. WHAT??? Apparently the airport code for Tampa is TPA not TIA. TIA is Tirana, Albania.

Ooookay…refine search!

:D

~Heidi

10 minutes

OMFSM!!!!!!!!!!

You are not going to believe this. I just sat on hold for oh, probably ten minutes listening to that nasty music because I was supposed to receive email confirmation on something and it hadn’t arrived. While I was waiting I checked my email. The side bar in Outlook said “4 unread messages” but there were only three in my inbox. After some quick checking I found one in my spam folder (I very rarely if ever get spam at this address so I never check it). Guess what was there? The email in question!!!

There’s ten minutes of my life that I’ll never get back!!!

~Heidi

PS Blogger has been really weird this morning, hence the delay on this second message.

“Please Hold”

Who invented hold music? And why did they demand that it be the *worst* music on the planet? Nasty muzak with some chick saying “please remain on the line to keep your call in priority” every thirty seconds. Uggh. This is brutal!

Although I will say by far the WORST hold music I have EVER heard, is on the Creative Memories consultant line. That stuff was just nasty. It was so bad that it would set our fax machine off. E.v.e.r.y.t.i.m.e. It was just the right frequency. I finally started just calling from work during my lunch hour, or unplugging the fax machine.

I had a crazy busy weekend but it was a ton of fun. I’ll try and update soon.

~Heidi

You're gonna die

One of my co-workers (our receptionist) smokes. On Thursday's and Friday's when our part time receptionist is off I'm responsible for covering the phones when this girl goes for lunch or out for a smoke.

Today, when she informed me that she was headed out for a cigarette I told her

"Girl, you're gonna die if you keep doing that."

She replied with, "If I don't go, someone certainly will die". She's a bit stressed right now. You can't really argue with her logic either :D

~Heidi

Word of the Day #16: eponymous

e·pon·y·mous ( P ) Pronunciation Key (-pn-ms)adj.
Of, relating to, or constituting an eponym.

ep·o·nym ( P ) Pronunciation Key (p-nm)n.
A person whose name is or is thought to be the source of the name of something, such as a city, country, or era. For example, Romulus is the eponym of Rome.
Medicine. A name of a drug, structure, or disease based on or derived from the name of a person.

I think this is the coolest sounding word. I see it often in relation to self titled albums. Just a bit of trivia, George Strait's 27th album was simply named "George Strait" The quote from his website reads: "When asked about the eponymous title of this CD, George replied jokingly, 'Yeah, I ran out of CD titles so I just stuck my name in there'." :D

~Heidi

Party Lite

I went to a Party Lite show tonight. It's probably been about three years since my last one. It was fun. Very nice stuff but I didn't buy a thing. I just couldn't justify making a "token purchase" of tealights or votives or something when their shipping is $4.25 an order. None of the holders stood out to me either. I have more then enough already so it was really easy to talk myself out of anything.

The consultant was really good though. I find that since I have been in a direct selling position, I am very critical when it comes to other consultants. She impressed me though. She's only been selling Party Lite for 14 months and she already has 15 downline!!! Plus she had great product knowledge and she was helpful without being pushy.

Anyhow, I'm proud that I didn't spend money. Everyone else did though so the hostess still got her gifts :)

~Heidi...off to burn a candle from her stash...

Ma'am

I just got off the phone with a hotel in Atlanta. I'm pretty sure that in the last ten minutes I was called "Ma'am" more times then I have been in my entire life!!! Yi yi yi! She was a very sweet girl. I did have her repeat herself a few times because her Southern drawl was so thick but she was very helpful.

This job is certainly interesting!

~Heidi