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Sunday, December 2nd, 2007
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8:33 pm - Early morning in the basement
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| Monday, November 26th, 2007
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10:40 pm - Breaking Radio Silence for Some Important News
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| Friday, September 14th, 2007
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12:32 pm - You don't see civil servant in there anywhere, do you?
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1.Special Effects Technician
2.Actor
3.Technical Writer
4.Costume Designer
5.Anthropologist
6.Set Designer
7.Director of Photography
8.Comedian
9.Casting Director
10.Critic
11.Print Journalist
12.Communications Specialist
13.Musician
14.Sport Psychology Consultant
15.Writer
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| Wednesday, April 11th, 2007
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11:58 am
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I thought I would be posting a lot about my new house, and the moving and the fixing up I was doing. But I'm not because I'm either A) too busy or B) too tired. It also took me a full ten days to manage to make it down to the basement and set up my computer so I was offline at home until Sunday. And of course, work has been craxy since I got back. So, like many of my posts I offer you point form highlights of the last few weeks, and a vague promise that I will be more updatey someday.
( The Joys of home ownership )
Another vague promise: Some day I find the charger for my camera batteries and I'll post pictures.
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| Saturday, March 24th, 2007
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10:16 pm
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I'm exhausted today. And I keep forgetting to bring my camera. But the floors upstairs are almost done and look amazing. The floors downstairs...are...passable. I wish I could splurge on getting the rest of the house done, but that will have to wait.
Meegiemoo and her DH helped me pick up paint and move my breakables to the house today. There were about 20 boxes. About 17 were all pottery. I have a problem.
I bought paint today for the LR, bedrooms and kitchen. Still can't decide what I want for the hallway and the DR. Painting the panelling in the basement will have to wait until I have the intestinal fortitude for it. I'm hoping by the end of the day tomorrow to have one coat on the LR walls.
I have managed to do something that is making my right knee and hip ache. I have even taken Aspirin in a vain attempt to be able to fall asleep. Speaking of sleep, I think I am going to do the unheard of and go to bed before mignight.
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| Thursday, March 22nd, 2007
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11:50 pm
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So I guess I should post about this. I am on day two of being a homeowner. What the hell am I doing? It's all pretty overwhelming, and expensive! It's also weird to be cummting from
So far, things are moving slowly. The carpets are pulled up in the bedrooms and I have a guy coming tomorrow to sand them and redo them. (The carpets were glued down sometime in the 60's and my first act as a homeowner is not going to be gouging the hardwood floors with the sander.) I've pulled up the carpets in the living room and dining room (thankfully not glued down) but I haven't pulled out those tack boards from the edges of the floor yet. (That's tomorrow's job.) The floors downstairs are in pretty good shape, with a few areas of white spots from being under carpet, but those can be fixed, I hope. There is hardwood throughout the house, with the exception of the kitchen and bathroom.
I'm really glad I packed most of my stuff before I took posession of the house, because mostly I am too tired to do anything when I come home. It's also strange to be sommuting from one place that has ALL MY STUFF in boxes, to one where there is NOTHING AT ALL. (Okay there's a cheap CD player and a dozen bottles of water.)
I would say more but I am too tired. Maybe I'll post pictures tomorrow if I remember to bring my camera.
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| Friday, March 16th, 2007
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1:40 pm - A meme
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1. Can you cook?
2. What was your dream growing up?
3. What talent do you wish you had?
4. Favorite place?
5. Favorite vegetable?
6. What was the last book you read?
7. What zodiac sign are u ?
8. Any Tattoos and/or Piercings?
9. Worst Habit?
10. Do we know each other outside of lj?
11. What is your favorite sport?
12. Negative or Optimistic attitude?
13. What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me?
14. Worst thing to ever happen to you?
15. Tell me one weird fact about you:
16. Do u have any pets?
17. Do u know how to do the macerana?
18. What time is it where u are now?
19. Do you think clowns are cute or scary?
20. If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be?
21. Would you be my crime partner or my conscience?
22. What color eyes do you have?
23. Ever been arrested?
24. Bottle or Draft?
25. If you won $10,000 dollars today, what would you do with it?
26. What kind of bubble gum do you prefer to chew?
27. What 's your favorite bar to hang at?
28. Do you believe in ghosts?
29. Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
30. Do you swear a lot?
31. Biggest pet peeve?
32. In one word, how would you describe yourself?
33. Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you?
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| Tuesday, February 13th, 2007
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11:28 am
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List 10 songs that begin with the letter given to you and explain why you picked them. Comment and I shall give you a letter.
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) jesseh gave me W.
Woodrow Wilson - Vic Chesnutt w. Emmylou Harris
Emmylou's vocals just raise the level of this song. I went to the Woodrow Wilson house in Washington, so I probably know more about him than I do any other dead president.
Without Mythologies - the Weakerthans
I saw the Weakerthans this fall and I was a bit underwhelmed by them live. The band was great but John K. Sampson was an incredibly reserved performer for such a personal songwriter. But they came out and did this song as an encore and it almost made up for the rest of the show.
Wishlist - Pearl Jam
The line "I wish I was the full moon shining off a Camaro's hood." is perfect. It gives me giggles.
Wig in a Box - Hedwig and the Angry Inch Soundtrack
Maybe the only musical I will ever love.
Who By Fire - Leonard Cohen
Ah Lenny. I love his back up singers.
Whisper To A Scream - Icicle Work.
I am a child of the eighties.
What the Snowman Learned About Love - Stars
Very dreamy romantic and dreamy
<Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key Billy Bragg and Wilco, with Natalie Merchant
I accidentally typed "Billy Bragg and Woolco"
Waiting to be Discovered - The Joel Plaskett Emergency
My local favourites. This song namechecks Night of the Hunter, which I have never seen, and this song often makes me think, " I should rent that. One day I will be in the video store, listening to this song, and I will.
Way Down in the Hole - Tom Waits
Picked it because this song is used as the theme to The Wire.
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| Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
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10:25 am - This is myyyy....HOUSE!
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I put in an offer on House #2 on Friday, and it was accepted. I'm still a little in shock. I was not prepared for them to accept my first offer. The whole dance of mortgage, inspection, lawyers and insurance has me in knots. It's all waaaay to grown up for me. Of course my mind is on paint colours and ordering from IKEA rather than the real nitty gritty.
I found out by reading the Books section of the Globe and Mail that my entry in the Great Canadian Literary quiz had been selected as a random draw winner. Yay I won, even if I didn't win the quiz. However, I have not been notified by the Globe and Mail in any official capacity that I have won, nor have I received any prize. I can't even remember which of my four email adress that I used to send in the entry. What do I win? And where the hell is it?
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| Friday, January 5th, 2007
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1:41 pm - Good and bad
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I was excited to learn yesterday that Season 2 of Twin Peaks is being released on DVD in April. I think a rewatcihng of Season 1 may be in order.
I was shocked to hear about this. I barely knew this couple when they lived here, but I know that they were brilliant, creative and kind. They inspired a lot of people I know, and really gave a lot to the local scene. I can't imagine something more horrible to kinder people.
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| Monday, January 1st, 2007
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9:03 pm
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Happy New Year Everyone. Welcome to the Year of Pork.
My apologies in advance to Muslims, Jews, and vegetarians.
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| Sunday, December 24th, 2006
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1:13 am - Well, hello...it's been a while.
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Trees trimmed: 5
Cookies Baked: 6 dozen (not that many, really, but there are more to come)
Gifts wrapped: 50+
Some days I just feel like an elf.
I am at my parents. Maurice, the large cat, is snoring in the next room. We are ready for Xmas and there's nothing left to do but wait...and wait. (And keep my mother from totally wigging out while making Xmas dinner.)
Yesterday my dad bought some scallops and immediately started going on about how his mother used to prepare them as Coquille St. Jacques when he was little. (And how Scallops were just thrown ont he beach by fishermen, and their dad used to send them own to gather them up.) This led to Googling a crazy number of recipes and then a call to my Aunt Lala. Then today, despite the fact that my sister was having us to supper, we made the Coquilles. My dad managed to get everyone to do the food prep for him (he's such a pathetically slow onion chopper, I just had to take the knife from him) and then took all the credit. Maybe he has a future as a chef.
Tonight my dad reached a new level in the "when we were young we had to walk 50 miles uphill in the snow..." game. He claimed that when he used to work in the woods with his Uncle Red and they wanted to read in the cabin, they had to stick some pork fat on a fork and set it alight and then stick the fork in the wall and read by pork light. Which my sister immediately called "bullshit" on, and led to me making jokes about the Bacon of the month club.
ION, I still haven't found a house. Maybe in the new year?
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| Friday, November 3rd, 2006
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12:19 am - The actuality of potentiality qua potentiality
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Angus is such a rock star. (Click on the picture for the story.)
Tonight was the re-starting of winter movie night at my friend S's house. (Angus is her husband.) We watched Tristam Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story, which was amusing at times, and I thought it just sort of drifted at other times. I guess it's very true to the spirit of the book. I did wonder sometimes if the meandering bits were a mimicing of something in the novel, which I've never read. Coincidentally, this movie apparently had it's North American premiere at King's, thanks to some Tristam Shandy scholar that teaches there and advised on the film.
I am the programmer of this movie night that happens every other Thursday. If anyone has any suggestions for good movies, especially independent films that might not have made it to theatres near me. Foreign films and really heavy depressing stuff not what we're looking for. (Bergman is right out.) And, it goes without saying, musicals can get stuffed.
I looked at two houses tonight after work. One was quite nice and in an okay location, but had two tiny bedrooms. (And I mean you can maybe get a double bed and a dresser in there.) The other was off Romans Ave, by Hfx Shopping Centre, and was a much better size-wise but would require a lot of cosmetic work. It had a bit of a crazy layout, (Instantly to your right as you come in the front door is the bathroom) and the lawn was huge, but might be too much for me to mow. (I could get goats!) Both have potential, but I don't know. I need to go back and look with someone who can give them the stink-eye for me.
Oh, and the power keeps going out in this city. Like it's happened at least a half dozen times in the last couple of days. NS Power are blaming it on salty fog. Which has got to be the lamest excuse ever. Anyway it hit tonight when my real estate agent and I were in the freaking basement of a house. We had almost felt our way back to the stairs when the power came on. Of course, I had been joking about the place being haunted when we were upstairs, and my real estate agent said it was the first thing she thought of when it all went black. My first thought was "Fucking Nova Scotia Power!"
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| Tuesday, October 24th, 2006
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11:59 am
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I can't believe I haven't made a real update since before my birthday.
But don't think you're getting one now. I am just dragging my ass around work today. I went to Tribeca last night to see The Joel Plaskett Emergency do a "secret" opening set for the Gemma {mem-fault} Ritual. I had about a half pint of beer too much and stayed up way late trying to avoid a hangover today. (It takes very little to make me hungover, I just have to go to bed before it wears off.) So I am dead today. I've bene goig out a lot, it feels like. Maybe I am having a mid-life crisis.
I ran into some people that I hadn't seen in yonks so that was nice. It was great to see The Emergency in a small bar that wasn't filed with crazy pushing drunk people. (It was very smoky, I can't wait until December.) The Gemma Jones (I'm just making that up to put something there)Ritual were really good too. In the Patti Smith (but less crazy) and PJ Harvey (but less likely to work my last nerve) vein. Very intense.
I dreamt last night that I was writing a symphony and I wanted to arrange to have for rain effects to fall on stage during part of the work. "Because when I say Canada, I want people to think rain." Whatever.
Anyway, I just came to post that y'all should read this, from the lovely and talented Erin at Dress a Day: You Don't Have to Be Pretty
Oh yeah, and I've started looking at houses. I'm meeting my real estate agent after work to see another one.
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| Wednesday, October 11th, 2006
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1:58 am - Only Kevin Bacon can save us!
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| Monday, September 18th, 2006
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4:06 pm - The weekend
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I had a very busy weekend. My friend K. arrived Thursday to stay with me this afternoon. (She's probably heading to the airport as I type.) I haven't seen here in 10 years, so I wondered if it would be awkward. It wasn't. I think we're both essentially the same people we were 15 years ago when we were friends in university. (I can't decide if this is good or bad.) Also, we're very similar in tastes, so knowing where to take her for food, drinks, etc, was pretty easy.
K. was here for our school's alumni AGM (she's one of their BC reps). As part of the meeting she got free tickets to Snow Cake, which was showing as part of the film festival. Good movie, though it is a cognitive disconnect ot see Alan Rickman eating McDonald's, even if it is part of his character. Then there was a party after the film which our tickets got us entry to. Hello free booze. The weird part was hanging out with King's alums. I had forgotten what that (much too) cozy world can be like. Then we went to the Shoe Shop and continued to drink. The tab was paid by someone who some kind of banking guy. More free booze!
You know that an evening of free booze can never be good the next day. I wasn't really hungover, but I felt exhausted all day. K. went off for the day with another friend and I did small errands around the house and napped often.
K. had another friend in town for the film fest who got us comps for Sarah Polley's directorial debut, Away From Her. Another solid movie. Ms. Polley was in attendance and actually sat (at the end of our row) and watched the movie with the rest of us. She looks about 12. Her husband was the editor on the film, so she brought up to the front of the theatre and he was totally bashful, blushing and grinning at the same time. He was totally adorkable.
Then K. and I went out for drinks (I stuck to ginger ale) and hopefully to meet up with A., K.'s friend and ticket lady. She had a meeting after the screening (oh those movie types) and couldn't make it, so we got home at 11:30.
We were in the living room, and I could hear this awful scratching
noise from the back of the house. It was Clio, outside hanging off my bedroom window's screen. I figured he must have gotten out when K. came home earlier in the day.
I go to bed and sleep horribly. Many trips to the bathroom. Then about 6AM, there was a horrible scratching noise again. It scared the shit out of me...I thought it was a large rodent. But there was Clio hanging off the screen again! I couldn't at first figure out hose she got out there. had she developed super intelligence and opposable thumbs that let her open locked doors? Were vandals in the neighborhood breaking in houses to let out cats? Was there a hole in the wall somewhere? I discovered that she had pushed the screen out of one of the kitchen windows and was escaping that way. What a brat! I figure there must have been a cat outside, because it would have taken some effort to push that screen out of the way.
Now I'm at work dragging my butt around.
Next up. S. and her dog come tomorrow.
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| Friday, September 8th, 2006
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9:22 am
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I am trying to keep a dream diary. I used to write down my dreams all the time in my journal, when I kept a written journal. I don't know if they are of any practical (or impractical) use, but I like being able to remember my dreams and write them down. It has some kind of value to me. Maybe I should go into analysis, so I can really work them.
The big trade off is losing precious minutes of sleep. My morning routine is all about bargaining with myself for a just a little more sleepy time, so it's a big effort for me to get up for anything. This morning I woke up about 15 mintues before my alarm, and I had been dreaming, and I was just on the verge of falling back to sleep when I realized that if I didn't write the dream down it would be gone. I remembered that I went back to sleep yesterday, and was disappointed in myslef, so I made myself get up and write it down.
I promise I won't bore you with too many dreams. Only the really weird ones.
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| Wednesday, September 6th, 2006
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9:52 pm - Shoes!
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It's all la_perkins fault. She made me buy shoes!
( So easily corrupted by the power of suggestion. )
ION, I am having a laundry mental block. I've needed to do laundry for about a week, but the pile is so large, I can't bear the thought of tackling it. I was off on Tuesday and didn't do much of anything, so I just sat around, thinking about needing to get the laundry done, but not actually doing a damn thing about it. I may have enough clothes to make it to the weekend, but I might be dressing pretty crazy for the next couple of days.
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4:11 pm
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Monday night I went to see Dinosaur Jr. at the Marquee. Dino played very heavy and seemed to be pretty into it. J. Mascis was wearing these crazy green shoes and Lou Barlow said that Halifax was far away from everything. (They didn't talk much otherwise.) It was very loud. Loud enough that I put in earplugs halfway through, but not the loudest thing ever. It was a good show. It didn't quite live up to the Dino show I saw in Vancouver in 1993, but that was an amazing, trippy show, and it could never live up to that.
But what struck me more than anything was how old everyone was. One of Dino Jr's touring cases had a label that said "Dinosaur Jr. Sr." and there was a lot of grey hair. Both onstage (all of it on J. Mascis) and in the audience. There were also a lot of people I haven't seen since I last went to a Marquee show, and I swear there were people I recognized fromt he old Birdland days.
Pair this up with the hangover I got after having four beer at a party the weekend before, and I'm definitely feeling my age.
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| Friday, September 1st, 2006
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11:06 am
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I'm off to visit my family for the weekend. Which would be fine except for the bus ride. I need to find a regular ride or get over my driving thing and get a car.
ION, there is no news. I have found the name of a real estate agent, but I haven't called her yet. I had to ask a lot of people who've bought houses recently before I found someone who would recommend their agent. I got in the mindset this week that what I can afford, I wouldn't want to live in, so what's the point, but I guess it can't hurt to look.
Behind the cut, there's a story of the Halifamous that probably only coneycat will find as funny as I did.
( Seriously, if you're not from Halifax, it's not all that interesting )
Speaking of the Halifamous: http://www.stevemurphy.ca/
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