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Normally I like to start with a rose, but this time I want to get a big thorn outta the way.
Thorn
J's mom discovered that she had cancer a month ago. Apparently she's had it for a year or two, but only felt the pain and consequences from it now. A large tumor was removed from her colon a few weeks ago, but in the process, the surgeon discovered that the cancer has spread to the muscle and that it is very aggressive. So.... that's all we know. We're waiting for her next appointment to find out if chemo is an option.
Rose
Because of this news, J spent my birthday at home. Bittersweet, I guess. Like his brother said, if there was only one day for him to have off work, it's nice that it was that one. We did manage to have a good day, despite the circumstances. I got a mani/pedi, while J picked me up a few little birthday items (he had to work late the night before, when he intended to go shopping). We had a nice lunch downtown. Afterwards, I scored my free gifts from Sephora. Apparently their system said I hadn't picked up my free gifts the year before (I did), so they gave me last year's treat as well. In retrospect, suppose I could've corrected them, but oh well... I wasn't thinking, and hey, free lip gloss!
Thorn
My sister has been going through hell with her little guy. They're waiting to get him into counselling, but because of his age (4), they're not sure what they'll accomplish.
It's hard to know if he's simply a product of his environment (both parents have diagnosed mental illnesses, and are always screaming at each other, the kids, their 6 dogs, etc) or if he actually has a mental illness himself. She took him to the hospital the other day after he kept freaking out and trying to hurt himself, but because he had calmed down by the time she got there, and given his age, there was nothing they could do.
Out of desperation, she called the padre on base for some sort of empathy and reassurance - instead, he was rather rude and unhelpful, insisting that it wasn't protocol for someone to patch her through to him. Amy eventually told him that he was f*cking useless. Yup, leave it to my sister to swear at a "man of god". Heh... Anyway, it breaks my heart to see someone so young already so troubled. :(
Rose
My friend Heather came into town on the long weekend. (Thorn - I couldn't get the day off.) We did breakfast at work before my shift, and then hooked up afterwards with some other friends for drinks at a hipster looking place called Nirvana, and then a belated b-day dinner of Persian cuisine at Pomegranate. It was really tasty. I'd go back for sure.
Rose
The neighbour who I found once annoying for critiquing my garden the other week, ended up being a huge help. He saw me outside trying to tame our jungle with sheers, so he gave me his lawn mower and rake Actually, he mowed the greatest part of our front n' back yard himself. It was beyond kind of him, especially since the cord our landlord *finally* left for our mower could barely reach the grass. Sheesh.... Thanks anyway. :P
After the lawn was mowed, I spent some time in the garden and got a bunch of stuff planted. My seeds are sprouting nicely, but I didn't want to hedge all my bets on them, so I decided to buy some plants from the greenhouse down the street. I was very impressed with their heirloom varieties and cheap, cheap prices. I may go back for more.
Thorn
Now that we have a trimmed backyard to enjoy, we've been letting the cats out from time to time. This has been really nice for them. They love prancing around, sitting under trees and basking in the sunshine. However, Emmy often decides when he wants to go outside for himself - usually at 5 a.m., or like... right now, he'll sit at the door and meow and meow and meow. Ugh. I suppose we could let him out like all the other cats in the hood, but we don't want to. We want our fur faces to live long lives, so that means they can only go out under our supervision. Plus, there's a litter of raccoons living in our neighbour's garage. We don't need to see how not so well cats n' raccoons mix... (I actually hear a couple raccoons outside freaking out on each other right now.)
Rose
On Victoria Day, J n' I met up with some of the guys from work, and we secured a good spot on the pub's patio to watch the fireworks. It was a nice evening, and healthy to get out of the house and socializing, something I think J needs more of.
On a related note, J said that he doesn't remember there ever being big public displays of fireworks on Victoria Day in BC. I can't remember myself. I assumed there was... but now I don't recall.
Rose
Because my boss couldn't give me Saturday off last weekend, she gave me both days off this weekend...
Thorn
Except that someone called in sick and I had to work on Saturday.
Rose
I agreed to only work 3 hours, just to help out over lunch. Not a full shift.
Thorn
A half hour before I left, my boss called and asked for a favour, giving me a list of things to prepare for a big catering order that night. (Things that she was supposed to be doing from home....)
Rose
My dear co-workers took care of the list, allowing me to leave on time. J n' I then met up with our friends Steph n' Steve and we explored the Kensington Market. Such a groovy place. I've always heard about it, but this was my first time. We enjoyed some authentic Mexican food, followed elsewhere by vegan ice cream. I bought a bunch of health food stuff I had been needing/wanting, and then tied my purse strings tight to avoid splurging on any other impulsive nonsense. It'd definitely be a good place to find unique gifts. It's also a great place to find some creative inspiration. Fun, fun, fun, n' funky.
A funky lil' gallery...
Funky street art and garden (the car was a virtual greenhouse inside...)
Rose
Yesterday, I went to the Treating Yourself Expo with an old friend and a new one. It was a good time. I saw a handful of people from Vancouver, like my old boss, and some other familiar faces n' friends. As we left the Cannabis Culture booth, I overheard my sweet former boss tell someone that I was one of their best employees (likely because I was an actual activist and a hard worker. I didn't collect a pay cheque for just rolling doobs all day). Still, her comment kinda made me smile to myself as I thought, "Yep, no one can rinse a bong like that girl!" She then segued into the movie stuff, which was a nice touch. ;)
Rose
My friend from work gave us his old tall kitchen table. I look forward to finding some stools and setting it up. Right now J n' I eat every meal in front of the computer. J sits in a borrowed computer chair and I sit in a donated recliner, and we just push the keyboard out of our way. If we want to eat a meal face-to-face, it usually has to be done in a restaurant. Oh man, it'll be great to have a dinner table again. :)
Rose
I was ID'd at the liquor store the other day. Considering I had just celebrated my 34th birthday earlier in the week, and legal drinking age in Ontario is 19, I was feelin' pretty good. Then again, the sign says they need to ID anyone who looks under 25. Even so, I'm not complaining. ;)
Okay. I think that's it for now. I promise to blog more soon. My head has just been full lately, and I haven't really had a chance to collect my thoughts and dump it's contents on the page/screen.
10 roses to 5 thorns or 50/50 certainly room for improvement.