Thursday, April 06, 2006

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Old Blog page 4 (Older)

Moving House, going back to Trep

Trepid Explorer

Sorry, Opera, but I've found a faster, more reliable service (since you were closed down ALL DAY).

cry

I have to pay for it... but with all things in life, you get what you pay for I suppose.

Perhaps I'll return when they piss me off... As with all things in life, that eventually happens.

Weekend in Vancouver

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Doing the Vancouver Tourist Board's job for them here, but I have to post some pictures from my weekend away with Hubby, staying in the Sheraton Wall Centre at the beconing of Mr Gillespie.


A Sea Otter does backstroke (actually, just floats there eating) at the Vancouver aquarium. Apparently they don't have fat like other sea mamals but keep their fur constantly clean and aerated to stay warm.


A rescue dolphin does it's thing


Tropical Flower that I "picked"(out) for Silver Lining


A cheeky-marmoset


Fog and sunrise from the 25th floor of the Sheraton Wall Centre.


Colourful, sunny Vancouver


O Canada


The steam-powered clock at the appropriately-named "Gastown".

Fresh Tracks

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Last weekend we were in Vancouver and consequently I didi no training all week, trying to recover from the long hours of driving and the over activity and over indulgence that came with the weekend. It didn’t help that work was insane. Completely insane. So Saturday was also spent doing very little – playing the pianner and doing houseworky nonsense. Consequently by lunchtime I felt like cak. It had been a beautiful day and I was wasting it.

Not feeling like doing any exercise, I drove to town to get some groceries and spend some serious cash. I first noted, in the car, that my sunglasses suck.

My first stop was at Penticton City Runners where I bought new sunglasses – complete with three lens options – sunshine-shaded, happy orange and snow-proof-colourless (because ALL GLASSES ARE CLEAR, OTHERWISE YOU COULDN’T SEE THROUGH THEM)

Next stop, Skaha Outdoor where I spent a long time choosing a new running jacket and trying to find some track pants but failing miserably. I also bought some very thin thermal gloves to keep in the pockets of the running jacket.

Finally I made it to the grocery store but without the new sports bras or knickers that I thought I needed to buy.

Now adorned with new gear to provide the impetus to train this week, I headed for home, feeling just a little pissy that I still didn’t do anything constructive with my Saturday. The cure for this is skiing on Sunday. Because I left my camera at home we had Wonderful conditions – excellent snow on the ground and sunshine in the sky.

Ski racers practicing for race today. I thought, "I wish I had my camera for a picture for dad" cos there were four beautiful women lined up in front of us at the lift in lycra ski suits with very peachy bottoms and perfect legs. Probably crap skiers because they didn't have much thigh but they looked
good.

Did my own bit of ski racing. Found an open wide slope at the perfect angle and carved some mean turns, leaning right over and touching the snow with my hand as I sped round... "SWEET" as they say in Canada. Got to the bottom of the hill out of breath with a big grin on my face. You have to make the most of
"firsts" when you get to this age.

In keeping with my new philosophy of not being a shitty woos, got up this morning to ride to work, stuck my nose out of the door and swore because it was raining and my rain jacket is at work but then realised it was
snowing and I got to try out my new glasses so happy instead. Rode for quite some time before a motorist passed and took away my fresh-tracks-status, then I was on the KVR and it was all mine again – mine! All mine! Polartec windproof fleece (from 21st birthday!) kept the moisture out as far as the city boundary when I started to get a damp elbow crook (!). Office now adorned with soggy pants, jacket, dripping helmet and battery pack, etc. Plastic bag on saddle just incase I decide not to woos out and get Hubby to pick me up on the way home. 17.41 km/hr. Not bad for a 5:45am start and skiing yesterday.

Shhhhhh... don't tell anyone

Yesterday, I spent $22 (11 quid) on a lip balm.

It's gookin' fud. Fixing all my broken lips.

And so foxy.

Then... I bought some eye-shaddow and got a free gift pack.

Just call me Elizabeth Arden.

Then I got home and continued my quest to go back-to-blonde (which is similar to back-to-basics).

I feel a little weird and pampered.

I am sooooo. busy

I do not have time to sit down, never mind blog. Keep meaning to try and get blog set up at home but get back exhausted every night. However, I am having fun. When you look at your watch and suddenly realise it's lunchtime when you thought it was 9am coffee, it makes for a fun working day.

What's more... I got a letter from a very special long-term friend last night.

Hello Catherine!

Gender Prayers. For DBO

FEMALE PRAYER
Before I lay me down to sleep,
I pray for a man, who's not a creep,
One who's handsome, smart and strong
One who loves to listen long,
One who thinks before he speaks,
One who'll call, not wait for weeks.
I pray he's gainfully employed,
When I spend his cash, won't be annoyed.
Pulls out my chair and opens my door,
Massages my back and begs to do more.
Oh! Send me a ! man, who'll make love to my mind,
Knows what to answer to "how big is my behind?"
I pray that this man will love me to no end, and
always be my very best friend.
Amen.


MALE PRAYER
I pray for a deaf-mute nymphomaniac with huge boobs
Who owns a liquor store and a bass boat. This doesn't
rhyme and I don't give a shit. Amen

Brokeback Mountain

In the land where horses are horses and men are cowboys... this film is creating quite a stir but I imagine it's nothing compared to the US where horses are horses and men are NOT gay, no, no sir, never, no no, the good lord would not allow it.









So Canada, if our conservative government does away with our new gay marriage rights, does that mean all gays who got married in the last... oooo... 12 months... have instant annulmnents?

How does that work?

Remember "Cypress Hill"?

Well, this weekend we're off to Cypress Mountain with Mr Gillespie. Pass the planks.



Achey breaky bum

On Monday I rode to work. I did 17.95km/hr on the way in.

On Monday I gaffed up big time at work and had to run around madly making up for my mistakes. We didn't finish till 5:30 and then I rode home - fast because I was hungry. I clocked 19.75 km/hr on the way home.

Yesterday I brought the car to work for a rest and got home early and made myself pasta with mushroom stroganoff to bring to work for lunches.

Today I woke at 5:19 in a VERY bad mood. I thought I could go in on my bike - since I'm awake. I really didn't feel like it. I made toast and told myself to stop being a baby. I still really didn't fell like it. I zeroed my cyclomputer.

I got dressed into my cycling clothes, supping on tea and still didn't feel like it but I told myself that if nothing else it would improve my mood.

I got my bike out and loaded it up, still not feeling like it and spent ten minutes searching for the cyclomputer that I had in my hands 10 minutes ago. I gave up.

I rolled out onto the road and began the climb up the hill. My legs were heavy and totally not feeling like it. Je n'ai plus de courage, ni plus de fière.

Towards the top of the hill (where yesterday I sprinted because I got bored) self-saviourism kicked in and I started thinking about my impending weekend away. Then I remembered I'd forgotten my carefully prepared lunch and seriously wondered about turning round and going home to get the car.

I kept going, and noticed every other goddamn hill due to a dull, unbothered lethargic pain in all my muscles. At the winery I breathed a sigh of relief because it's the start of the downhill(ish) then I popped out of the shade of the hills into a stiff Northerly head-wind, to battle all the rest of the way to work.

At work, there were no shoes in my office, they were stored in my changing room ladies' loo. I went to get dressed (now urgently needing to pee the tea away) and the frickin' door was locked. I went to the office to get the spare key which I remembered I stole to stop the stoopid male supervisor using it whilst on night shift so I had to walk all the way back to my office to get my keys, which I had hidden from myself, all the time barking at anyone that made eye contact because I'm in a really bad mood.

Three hours, a cup of coffee and two pain killers later, I am calm again, but please don't rattle my cage today. It's like poking a lion with a stick.

Dirty Weekend Away - Part 5 - the Clean Bit

Once we leave rural bliss with the smell of dog, the fury floor, the choke chains and bridles hanging from the walls we drive to Fort Langley and eat fish and chips before taking the Albion ferry across the Fraser River as the sun is setting. What is it about a trip on a ferry that really makes you feel like you’re travelling? We have to wait for 4 ferries to make the crossing before we got on there but it is fun, making stunted progress along the road, remembering you’re saving a huge round trip, and it reminds me of the Kylesku ferry to Ardgour in Scotland.




1 hour later we are in Harrison Hot Springs public baths. We wallow for an hour in 100F (38C) natural sulphur water, staring at the white tile walls, wooden roof and Japanese screen-style window lights that are actually made of glass-fibre instead of paper. We discuss bunking off work to get more holidays this year.

Feeling healed and revitalised we drive on towards home, eating left-over Greek pizza. Eventually the cloud clears and the moonlight is shining on the mountains as we pass back through Hope. I see the most amazing mountain scenery I have ever encountered. The moonbeams are doing very strange things to the perspective and the cliffs are more vertical than usual, the trees magnified to 10 times normal height so that you can’t quite tell if you’re looking at a clump of fir trees or a towering boulderfield.

Hubby can drive on and on through the darkness – and he did. Meanwhile, I drifted in and out of sleep and eventually climbed into the back to lie down and roll around with the new gear box. He was gentle and didn’t flip me off my perch once.

Back home at midnight we finally slid into bed to dream of ferns and rainforests and smallholdings, of light spattering between tree branches and barns full of goodies. See you soon Rover Landers.

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Sleeping around in Blog-space & BC Drivers

Opera is being dirty and unreliable, giving me bad connections. So whilst I bed-hop with other blog hosts, I'm back here for now.

I know I haven't run for a long time but I didn't think I'd have to actually blow the dust off my running shoes. OK, it's a dusty office that I work in, so it's not SO long since I ran. I still managed to get up to the railway cutting - allegedly a respectable 5.95km, though I expect it's more like 5km or a bit less.

I seem to work better at this training lark if I give myself NO rest days (but perhaps the odd walking lunch instead of all-out day-in-day-out training would be more respectable.

Last night I went seriously sideways on my bike - actually dropping it into the road (thankfully there was a left hand camber so the bike wheels ended up in the road and I ended up on the gravel). No damage done. I was, however, disturbed by the slippiness of the road so I rode with a foot out at 7kmph (murder on the averages) all the way to the house. Coming down a hill in the car-tyre-tracks (not icy) instead of the cyclist's position (frozen snow / ice) with my foot out, a car behind me just had to beep. With the bus oncoming and gravity on my side, there was no way I was attempting any manoevres / stoppages / steering. As the car passed, I was so angry I yelled. I can't remember how I opened my yelling but it finished with, "What? Would you rather have me die?".

At the next hill climb, the car was stopped, waiting. A head was poking out the window. My heart was thumping and I was ready for a fight.

A pretty lady leaned out the window and said, "Hi. I just wanted you to know, that I wasn't beeping because I was mad at you. I wanted you to know that I couldn't stop"

Me thinking: "Thanks, great. My problem, your fault."

She was so distressed though, that she'd hurt my feelings and been in any way anti-cyclist. We sympathised with eachother about the horrible conditions and I stepped out of the road to let her set off - because I couldn't actually get enough purchase on the ice to start riding again till I got to the top of the hill.

So weird, so wonderful.

Then some ***t in an SUV passed me at 90kph with no room to spare and my goodwill was gone. Still, one person with good intention is better than none with any clue.

Monday, January 30, 2006

Old Blog page 3 (Older)

In the style of Graculus (in my inbox this morning)

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN BRITISH COLUMBIA

1. Vancouver: 1.5 million people and two bridges.
2. Your $400,000 Vancouver home is just 5 hours from
downtown.
3. You can throw a rock and hit three Starbucks
locations.
4. There's always some sort of deforestation protest
going on.
5. Weed

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN ALBERTA

1. Big rock between you and B.C.
2. Ottawa who?
3. Tax is 7% instead of approximately 200% as it is
for the rest of the country.
4. You can exploit almost any natural resource you
can think of.
5. You live in the only province that could actually
afford to be its own country.
6. The Americans below you are all in
anti-government militia groups.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN SASKATCHEWAN

1. You never run out of wheat.
2. Your province is really easy to draw.
3. You can watch the dog run away from home for
hours.
4. People will assume you live on a farm.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN MANITOBA

1. You wake up one morning to find that you
suddenly have beachfront property.
2. Hundreds of huge, horribly frigid lakes.
3. Nothing compares to a wicked Winnipeg winter.
4. You can be an Easterner or a Westerner depending
on your mood.
5. You can pass the time watching trucks and barns
float by.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN ONTARIO

1. You live in the centre of the universe.
2. Your $400,000 Toronto home is actually a dump.
3. You and you alone decide who will win the federal
election.
4. The only province with hard-core American-style
crime.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN QUEBEC

1. Racism is socially acceptable
2. You can take bets with your friends on which
English neighbour will move out next.
3. Other provinces basically bribe you to stay in
Canada.
4. You can blame all your problems on the "Anglo
*#!%!"

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN NEW BRUNSWICK

1. One way or another, the government gets
98% of your income.
2. You're poor, but not as poor as the Newfies.
3. No one ever blames anything on New Brunswick
4. Everybody has a grandfather who runs a
lighthouse.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN NOVA SCOTIA

1. Everyone can play the fiddle. The ones who can't,
think they can.
2. You can pretend to have Scottish heritage as an
excuse to get drunk and wear a kilt.
3. You are the only reason Anne Murray makes money.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND

1. Even though more people live on Vancouver
Island, you still got the big, new bridge.
2. You can walk across the province in half an hour.
3. You can drive across the province in two minutes.
4. Everyone has been an extra on "Road to Avonlea."
5. This is where all those tiny, red potatoes come
from.
6. You can confuse ships by turning your porch
lights on and off at night.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN NEWFOUNDLAND

1. If Quebec separates, you will float off
to sea.
2. If you do something stupid, you have a built-in
excuse.
3. The workday is about two hours long.
4. It is socially acceptable to wear your hip waders
to your wedding

In Memory of...

Well, I just had to ride to work today. I have got the bike out again I am going to bath her at the weekend and I am going to get on with getting fit. A week off is tooooo long.

This morning:
16.13km
17.43kph
55:33 min
39.9 max. Wheeee!
1495km since moving to the Okanagan 18 months ago. That's a bit crap for a cycling chick.

Laters: I actually dragged my speed up to 18.03kph by the time I got home. Must've been the wind direction. Amazing news - that didn't occurr to me last Friday is that total distance is now up to 1512km. I need to figure out if these are Okanagan kms or Canadian kms... interesting. OK - for me perhaps.

Wow!

, , , ...

Hi Eve, Well, I was going to take my time over this but since you're here, I shalln't dilly-dally. I am new here to opera but come here from another blog-land.

I am excited. I have learned a lesson and I have implemented a change. It's something I have been meaning to do for a long time - start a newbie blog. It's both more public, being searchable, yet more private. The previous blog has, for some time, been a tad mundane, once I and my friends discovered that it was being invaded by - of all things - my family! And horror of horrors, they were mostly lurkers. And lurkers that exposed me to other family members, leadidng right up to Great Aunty Margaret. She didn't, I suspect, really want to know the fine details of my battle over pornography with the men at work or the exact swear words I used that day. And I must say, what I'd written suddenly seemed a little lame when it was replayed to my husband (up until now unaware of my blog) by my uncle.

So, my dears, my old friends and new, this is your forum, not just mine. Write what you will, let your keyboard wild, for this is me again...

LIVE, UUNCENSORED and UUPLUGGED.

For those who haven't met me before, here's what you could know to help you decide whether to stay, revisit or just read-on:
  • The content of this blog varies from day to day depending on who is authoring it: wifey, athlete, employee, pet owner, insane biker. They're all me, they just vary their input.
  • I generally work on the principle that if nothing's worth saying, don't say anything. I don't apply this to my blog
  • I work hard to find something to say every day and occasionally what I say is described as "classic"
  • I form strong attachments to friends I haven't met yet, but especially to those I left behind in the UK
  • I love my bikes a lot. They need new names, except "Red"
  • I like my cats and photograph them regularly. They are quite photogenic for cats. They're S-puss and Andrew.
  • I love posting pictures but my camera is a bit cheap.
  • I love my husband (Hubby) more than I blog about him.
  • I am a ski professional (instructor) but too much of a chicken to be poor so I am a slave to a "proper job" which I actually enjoy and care about (but I have to be in a good mood to admit it)
  • After years of denial I actually quite like kids adn would seecretly like to have one... or two.
  • I blog from work and don't really have time for surfing, posting links or downloads. I'm a bit of a luddite for technology but I get by.
  • Politically, I care about: the environment, cyclists rights and safety, government funded health services, personal choice in charity and religion.
  • I race triathlon: I love cycling. I'm learning to swim crawl. Running satisfies me but deep down, I don't really like it much.
  • Shhhh. I used to live in England
  • I miss: Friends, family, history, dry stone walls, pubs, rolling rural landscapes, familiarity (accent, dialect and awareness), sheep, employee rights, effective managers
  • I don't miss: British media, traffic, frantic lifestyle, high cost of living, the mortgage, rain, damp, mould, TV license, road tax, fuel tax, lack of community spirit, crime.

No time in the present.

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But

I'll be here soon.