she's purdy...

but not built to last, it seems.

this new format for my blog is nice and i have liked it so far, but since i changed it, my blog seems to be eating comments so if you don't see yours here, fear not!  i did receive it in my inbox and have no idea where it has gone, but i certainly did not delete it!

and thank you too, while i am at it.  my wah, wah, wah posts seem to bring out a lot of internetly support and that is swell.

it's magical!

over the past month, i have been becoming accustomed to the iphone, a magical, magical device that replaces my old blackberry.  my berry worked just fine, but i had mistakenly left my itouch on a plane while on my way back from toronto in december and i was able to get an iphone for the same price as a new itouch.

and let me tell you, this thing is magical.  i know that it can do a plethora of things, but so far i have found the following characteristics of my iphone and its aps magical:

• listening to cbc radio live at my desk
• watching ted speeches, performances, and presentations
• reading updated texts from last night
• browsing the internet (which is much more user-friendly than my berry)
• notifications that i have received a facebook message or other facebook-related activity
• making reservations through open table
• looking recipes up on all recipes
• the ability to gps my location and then make a map to where i want to get to
• listening to any song in my itunes library, because the whole thing fits on my iphone

there is also a running application that i will likely get that will map all my routes.  i don't typically carry my phone with me when i run as lately i have been running with other people and not listening to my tunes (and using my garmin to track my distance), but that sounds like something fun to play around with too.

oh, the magical possibilities!

nerves of spaghetti

there is a most important wedding coming up this saturday. one in which i am the maid of honour. one in which i need to deliver a toast that i have not yet written. one in which i am sure will be a wonderfully fun time. one that i am rather nervous for!*

all this primping and preparing and planning (and i didn't even need to do most of it!) is making me nervous. more nervous than my sister is, i think. i am feeling overwhelmed with the enormity of this day and how important it is for so many people, including me.

the bride seems to be completely calm, cool, and collected and it is me who is fretting. but my dress is altered, my 3 pairs of tights have been purchased (i am not sure which will be the best colour), my nails have been filled, my pedicure is booked, my wedding gift has been purchased (but not yet wrapped!), my hair has been coloured, my jewelry has been picked out, my coat has been drycleaned, my pearly whites are pearly and white, my shoes have been selected, and my skin has been exfoiliated. so i should be good to go, right?

now, just that toast...

* i tried to rewrite that sentence so as to not end with a preposition, but my brain is a little too overworked and full of excitment and stress at the moment to do anything but end with 'for.' oops, and i just did it again.

just another night in the ‘robes

(may 16, 2008)

i am sitting in my pyjamas and having a glass of wine after having set my pan on fire during the melting of the butter and heating of the vodka in the preparation of vodka pasta. like any normal person would, i tried to blow it out (fyi – NOT a good idea) then carefully turned the burner off and gently placed the pan back down on the stove and just waited for the fire to burnt itself out while i calmly wondered, ‘is is soda or powder that goes on a grease fire?’

instead of chancing it, i figured i would just watch and ‘monitor’ the fire. during my vigilant monitoring, i debated putting the pan on the stoop so that it was less likely to ignite my kitchen, but instead just called my flatmate, who was equally clueless on what exactly we should do. so we watched it burn together. and then she said, just like a 14 year old boy would, ‘wow, that was cool.’ and i replied, ‘i know, science, eh.’ and that is a true story.

the vodka pasta was nice (although i have made better batches, i think the secret lies in the cream) and i am now patiently awaiting the arrival of my taxi driver, who i hope will buy my cooker. and agree to come and visit me in canada one day. because without him, my stay in nairobi would not have been as rich of an experience and i am quite sad to think that i might not see him again.

he and i have been plant shopping together, had impromptu kiswahili lessons while passing time, he has picked me up at the airport after returning from journeys both long and short. he even picked my family up at the airport last year with a name sign that i am sure was spelled wrong and chauffeured us around town, even joining us at the baby elephants, which i think he enjoyed just as much as we did.

this guy has given me the low down on all the carjackings, robberies, and other neighbourhood happenings and he has also been a partner in a great many political discussions and we tried to solve the problems of kenya in the post election violence while navigating the streets of nairobi. he has rented me cars, given me free rides on my birthday or when he was exceptionally late, and he has given me the ok to marry my boyfriend who he thinks is a ‘good guy’ and is convinced i will return when i have babies in my arms.

actually, he was there the night we first met and picked up and delivered my keys when i got home and realised that i had left them with a friend at the bar. he has picked up important documents and take away food, helped me figure out how the central investigative division of the kenya police works, and will hopefully buy my cooker and fridge.

he reckons he will save his shillings and visit his friends in canada and australia (or austria, we never could figure out where his friend lives) and i do not doubt it. i am convinced the man sits on a vault of money. i just hope i can be as good of a driver and friend as he has been to me.

rocking the vote

in my morning newspaper scan i saw this about the upcoming year in canadian federal politics:

Harper’s cabinet overhaul comes as his government looks to launch a fresh approach to the environment — which polls show is a prominent issue among Canadians — and to bolster the Conservatives in what’s almost certainly an election year.

first of all, what does almost certainly mean? that is a style of journalism just as evasive as politics itself. second of all, i am not sure how i feel about the certainty of an election this year. it is no secret that i am not a fan of the conservative party, but they haven't done an absolutely abysmal job and what good will another election do? will any changes be made? will a majority be won? will people just be pissed off about the cost of a federal election?

regardless of what 2007 has in store for canadian politics, i will dutifully send in my ballot from where ever i am living like a good citizen of a democracy.

**ok, so i just typed the title of my post and then i thought, wait a minute, is 'rock the vote' supposed to sound like 'rock the boat'? then i thought, whoops, there went something else, flying well over my head for many years. sort of like the direction of the landing strip..., hey ladies?!

inappropriate behaviour

when i first arrived and had all of my money in a money order drawn on canadian funds, the bank told me that it would take 6 weeks and cost money to get it into my account. rather stressful. so today when i went to deposit a money order from canada post, in british pounds, they told me it would take 6 weeks and cost money to get it into my account. i have had it with these silly rules and people who cannot seem to comprehend how frustrating this is. i was told perviously that it was because it was in canadian dollars that it would take so long. but now it is just that it is from canada that it will take so long.

my temper got the best of me and i ended up telling the teller that it was f*cking ridiculous and then i had to apologise before she would continue with my transaction. i realise that i shouldn't have sworn, but it was sort of funny that i had to apologise before she would continue. sort of like a stand off. well, i did cause that is obviously not appropriate.

apart from swearing at the bank teller, i have had quite a nice week. i spent my birthday attending a dissertation workshop, talking to my fam on the phone, and going out for sushi with a nice english boy. i love being out and about on my birthday, like you have secret that no one else knows. and yesterday i visited my auntie, cousin, nana, and second cousin whom i had never met before in liverpool. holy scouse accent on that guy!

last night we had a birthday pyjama party in our kitchen where we had cake and presents because it is my flatmate's birthday today and it was really nice just to sit and talk and not have to rush off to get anything done or attend a lecture. which should be the perfect preparation for our weekend in london. i am going to see the Lion King! i am SO excited about going to the theatre in london and just wander the streets of a big city.

here is something that has made me laugh a few times in the past couple days...there are expiration dates on EVERYTHING here. apparently my onions should not be eaten after november 25th! but they are onions and look fine to me. it is the proper storage of things that is important really, but all the food companies are so paranoid that you'll sue them and they'll make more money if you need to throw out your onions cause the label says they are too old to consume. yeah right. rage against the expiration date!

baa baa black sheep, have you any wool?

i went to a town in the lake district today and visited a museum full of stuff that in canada would be considered Really Old, i love history. the town was the centre of the wool industry in england at one point and then that damn cotton replaced it. still lots of sheep in the countryside, looks like a fairy tale.

i had my first crumpet today. spongy, rubbery, and delicious.

i also managed to lose a pair of mittens, find a pair of mittens, lose a return train ticket, get home without a ticket, and pay almost $5 for tomatoes; a big day for stupid mistakes and inexplicable luck.

and i have committed myself to cheering jerome and the boys on in torino, italy. i have even secured a team canada jersey for the event. would anyone like to join me in supporting the true north strong and free?? the more the merrier, i hope that we can get on the cbc!