furryforestcritter

Warning: Weirdness and personal details contained within. Mostly weirdness. You've been warned.

Friday, January 26, 2007

Also sick

Ugh, I'm on the verge of getting sick again. Yesterday Jay and I did a bunch of plaster sanding in the new rooms, and today I'm full of goo. I hope this doesn't turn into a full-out everything infection again. I just got over the one from Mexico.

On the bright side, I've posted some of our pictures from Mexico on flickr. I've also linked to it in the sidebar. More to come soon, and also next month once I get more space there. I want to find something less limiting. I really need to find a good server host.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Sleep is good

I slept like a rock last night. Except all the times my honey woke up snuffling and coughing, because I woke up each time. But it was a groggy-fell-asleep-again waking. And we got to sleep in today (well, I did). It was the first time since I moved up that Jay didn't have to be at work for 5 or 6 am, and I always get up with him to send him off. He usually only gets home at 8 pm or so, it makes for a really long day for him. And for me too, since I don't have a job right now.

It's kind of hard to fill an entire day if you're me and feel guilty about sitting around. I also feel guilty about sleeping, because I know Jay can't do that, and I don't really want to be awake for hours after he goes to bed. So I've been doing a fair amount of cleaning and mending, and some tv-watching (surprise! I haven't done this since last time I had a roommate, and was supposed to be either working on my grad class homework or singing). Although it should be nice and relaxing, I actually find being on vacation rather stressful. I need things to keep my brain occupied.

Although wrestling with the bloody sewing machine for a couple hours yesterday didn't calm me down very much. I wish it was up-to-date enough to have warning lights when things go wrong, instead of just sewing all weird (wrong thread tension, I still had it set for quilting when I was mending jeans), or not fitting the material under the presser foot (the damn thing worked itself loose and fell off without telling me). I like sewing, but not when it's horribly frustrating. Then I just want to kick the sewing machine in the shins. I do not deal well with small irritations.

Did I mention that I love being here with my honey? Because that makes up for everything.

Bout freakin time

My profile info finally changed. I had to try 3 times, while republishing about 8 times, in order for it to go through. Hooray! Or something.

Friday, January 19, 2007

The here and now

I'm now somewhat moved to Lloydminster. I still haven't gone through all the stuff at the farm and we have to go pick up a load of furniture. I feel out of place, and I haven't even started to look for a job, but I guess I've only been here a couple days. I'm still worrying about it though. It's in my nature. And I was busy all day yesterday, so I'm not sure why it bothers me. I haven't even changed my address or gotten my car inspected, and won't be until I get my car windshield replaced. Then I can think about jobs. Yo, Amy's brain? Stop worrying.

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

The new improved top 40 by 40

Not that I plan on having 40 in this list either. In fact, I'm sure this one will be much shorter. And hopefully less embarassing to my future self.

- buy a pottery wheel and kiln, and use them
- become a mechanic
- compose a piece of music, or several
- write some decent literature (preferably better than this blog)
- travel in Europe
- make several more quilts (see, I did that one already)
- get back in shape (and be thin and beautiful, or something. Probably something)
- learn some languages - at least 1
- get my ARCT in voice
- take drawing/painting classes
- go on a cruise
- go to Egypt
- volunteer
- read a lot more classic books and listen to a lot more classical music, culture myself up a bit
- become a nicer person
- stay with my honey till approximately forever, and be worthy of him

Okay, this is starting to run like a list of New Years' Resolutions. It's not. Really. I have to admit, I still kind of want to skate in West Edmonton Mall, but it would be more of a bonus than a dream. Most of this stuff I'm pretty lax about, I'm not nearly as ambitious as I was at the start of university. Too jaded. And lazy.

Since I'm going through things

Today I went through a whole bunch of stuff that I've been storing, for possibly eons, here at the farm. And a lot of it I've been storing for no good reason, it seems. There's a large pile of stuff I'm giving away. Some of it I really like, but do I need it? No. And if I'm never planning on using it, or if the time when I would need it may be years away, why keep it? I can probably look for another one at that time.

Anywho, as I was digging through, I came across the top 40 by 40 list I wrote in 1st year university. After reading them over, I have to admit that there are a lot of things on there that I no longer have any interest in doing. Maybe I should re-write my list - a post idea for another time. Here is the original, in no particular order (I didn't count, but there probably aren't 40):
- study music in Europe
- take drawing/painting classes
- play hockey
- learn tennis
- live in a castle
- marry an older man with children and raise them
- write a novel
- own a horse - a good horse
- work in England
- learn Welsh
- learn French (live in Quebec)
- be CEO of a large computer corporation
- get married in my parents' yard
- live in New York
- travel - Brazil, Africa, South America, New Zealand/Australia
- marry money
- buy an acreage - small barn, etc.
- live in Victoria, BC or on Salt Spring Island
- own a fast expensive car
- design a technological innovation
- have grandchildren
- go on a cruise
- go to Egypt - see the pyramids, markets - on my own, my whims
- compose a good song/piece
- make a quilt (patchwork)
- act in a movie
- be thin and beautiful
- skate in West Edmonton Mall
- make a beautiful, well-made piece of furniture
- carve something
- art something beautiful

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Moving soon

Next week I'm moving to Lloydminster. I'm excited to be moving in with my honey. But of course I started worrying about all the little details last night. Why is it that I have to stress about not getting a job, when I know that I'm educated, have experience, and that there are tons of jobs up there? Somebody give me a swift kick in the ass please.

I have to start going through some of my stuff. I keep having to remind myself that I don't need to take everything, that I can come back and pick up things later. If only the weather would warm up so I can spend some time in the barn with my tupperware containers, I could actually start picking through some of it.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Just stuff

We got a shiny new digital camera before we went to Cancun. It's a Canon PowerShot 300 IS, and it rocks. Digital is great. This is the first digital camera I've (jointly) owned, and I love it. I take a great many crappy shots usually, so it's a big bonus to weed them out. Plus I don't have to develop everything, and then maybe worry about getting certain doubles later, etc. I love it. I'm all about the love.

I'm turning into a major bum. It doesn't help that Courtney has been over during the last couple days for me to play with, and that I don't really want to do the music history that I'm trying to read, and that I'm sick. It does help that the history is interesting though. I wish I could read a history of my own life, take a step back, see it as a complete whole that's already finished. I want to know how it ends, and what decisions to make.

Monday, January 08, 2007

I'm back

I am officially back from Mexico. It was a good time. I don't know if I'd do an all-inclusive again. It felt too touristy, too fake. It was convenient to not have to find our own food and drink, but we didn't really get to see much that was authentic. I don't think I'd go back to Cancun either, too expensive and too full of people who just want to drink and lounge on the beach. Not that I have a problem with that, but I'd also like to see some of the real Mexico, not just the resort areas.

We didn't end up doing a whole lot, partly because it took effort (effort in hot humid areas is more work than effort here), and partly because everything was hideously expensive. USD and pesos were the currency, and everything geared towards tourists was priced for them too. Most things in the hotel district were more expensive than at home. Things were more reasonable off the beaten path, but I wasn't terribly comfortable not knowing the language and being the only white person for blocks.

We did a day trip to Xcaret, a touristy animal/marine area. We saw deer, monkeys, a tapir (huge pig-thing - Jay made the comment that it looked like it was off Star Wars), parrots (they put them on my head and took a picture), sea turtles (I saw sea turtles), some "ruins", and a whack of fish. The snorkeling there was pretty cool, lots of fish, but got crowded as the morning progressed. I was glad our tour operator had recommended people do a different activity first, we had the snorkeling area pretty much to ourselves for the first hour.

After snorkelling and lunch, and a bit of wandering and trying to figure out where things were as the place was designed to confuse, Jay and I did the underground river swim. It ended up being about 1km long, with very little current, which meant we did a lot of swimming. Everyone else was using flippers and kept zipping past us. I was rather tired of swimming after that. The swim took up the remainder of our time before the night entertainment show, so we didn't see as much as I would have liked. But oh well, probably won't kill me. The only thing I regret not having seen was the butterfly area. The ones flying around free were neat as it was, I'm sure the caged ones would have been impressive.

The entertainment had some neat stuff. It was kind of a history of the local culture. They played a couple traditional ball games, one of which included sticks and a flaming ball, and was played like floor hockey. Every time the flames went out they got a new fiery ball. The wooden playing floor kept starting on fire, which for me was the best part. Besides the games there was a lot of dancing, most of which didn't interest me as it was post-European takeover.

It was a bit odd, instead of playing and singing, they had a pre-recorded soundtrack. They had a band and some traditional musicians, but the soundtrack was so loud that only the people immediately around those sections could actually hear the real music. Helpful if you know Spanish because the words were clear, but it must be a bit depressing to perform to something that's drowning you out. Just a leeetle too geared towards tourists.

We took a trip to downtown Cancun to go to Market 28 and Walmart. Market 28 was a maze of street sellers and small shops, all trying to sell tourist paraphernalia. Bargaining was the way to go. Jay's cousin, Leslie, was extremely good at it and got some amazing deals. She and Jay's sister Sheri got a lot of their souvenirs there. Jay and I cheaped out and mostly bought a few things for ourselves. Screw the rest of you. Almost all the stuff for sale was mass produced things like beach bags, sarongs, and t-shirts, all proclaiming CANCUN, MEXICO all over them. I wasn't impressed. I was hoping for more authentic hand-made stuff. So I got some brightly-coloured crap for my neice and nephews, a sarong that I absolutely love, a bright purple embroidered purse, and a couple cheap t-shirts. I wished later I had gotten a couple silver bracelets, but it won't kill me. There were also some neat carved chess sets, but they were extremely heavy and so I didn't get one.

Walmart was Walmart, but with produce. Everyday stuff was cheapish, which reassured me. Sort of. It was still Walmart.

The other day trip we did was to Isla Mujeres, an island that was a short ferry ride from downtown Cancun. We rented a golf cart and tootled around for the afternoon. Leslie and Sheri went swimming with dolphins - there are trained dolphins in an enclosure, with an official photographer who takes pictures of the dolphins doing specific things, and they sell them to you for exorbitant prices, etc. I'm glad I went in New Zealand with a pod of 300 wild dolphins with my own camera, rather than in a pen with 2 trained ones. I can see the plus to having a good photographer, and that it's cool to have a couple dolphins push you out of the water by your feet, but it looked too scripted for my taste, and for how much you pay there isn't a lot of interaction with the dolphins. I had dozens of dolphins swimming around me, for about an hour, with no agenda except their own. They were there because they wanted to be, not because they had to. I'm all about free will.

While the girls did that, Jay and I wandered around the island in the golf cart. We went by Garrafon, a park that was supposed to have snorkeling and zip lines. We saw the zip lines from the road, but the park itself was pretty small. We didn't end up doing that, although it might have been cool. I've been spoiled. The elementary school near my grandma's used to have a fairly decent (and free!) zip line type thing in the playground, been there done that, so I'm not very into spending money on it.

Jay and I also went snorkeling one morning, which was disappointing. We saw more fish at Xcaret than on the reef, and the area was very yellow-green, not colourful at all, and was rather murky. The Great Barrier reef in Australia was so much better. At least, in my memory it is. I'll have to pull out my pictures from back then, see if it really was. While we did that, the girls went parasailing. It's not that I think these things are a waste of time, they're just a waste of MY time. I'm not into that kind of stuff, bungee jumping and jet skiing aren't something I'm interested in doing, especially when there's better things to do.

I think that's my biggest beef with travelling, a lot of tourist areas cater to rich young hip tourists who want to go to bars and on thrill rides. I could do that shit at home. If I was into that, I mean. Why would I waste my time and money doing it in Mexico when I could be spending it seeing and doing things that can only be found there?

Which leads to another mild annoyance - I think most of the ruins we saw on the trip were recently made. On Isla Mujeres, we even saw some being built. Turns out those ancient Mayans believed in steel rebar. Ah well, at least I wasn't gullibled into thinking they were authentic and paying to see them. I still feel like I was cheated.

My honey has the camera with all the pictures, but I hope to get a flickr page soon to put them on.

Monday, January 01, 2007

Happy new year

It's all shiny and new! Everyone may now turn over a new leaf, and make some resolutions that they probably won't keep, and drink champagne. You have my permission.