Thrifty Thursday + Giveaway!

While this won’t be a wegular weekly wite-up, I thought I would take advantage of the available alliteration, perhaps planning to perpetuate its popularity in posts to come.

• • •

How do you save a few pennies in your day-to-day life? While we can always do more, here’s a list of some of the things we do around the house to keep more of our money in the account, and less down the drain.

• Vinegar. I’ve recently discovered it’s brilliant powers of cleaning—and deodorizing—just about anything. From windows and mirrors, to stainless steel sinks and appliances, chrome fixtures, bathrooms, stovetops, and more. Most applications require a simple ratio of 50:50 water:vinegar. I keep mine in a spray bottle, accompanied by a microfiber cloth. Wonderful.
• Menu Planning. We try, try, try to keep a weekly menu plan. I’ve posted my design freebie for a fridge menu planner/shopping list here, and we do use a variation of this by the very clever and witty Knock Knock company (until their pad runs out, then I’m switching to my wayyy more efficient design). Coordinating our menu and grocery list for the week means fewer trips to the grocery store and more deliberate choices, resulting in less waste of food and money.
• House Brand Products. Today, most grocery and department stores have their own house brands: no name, President’s Choice, Master’s Choice, Equality, Life, Great Value and more. I have been buying no name and President’s Choice products for at least 15 years. In my experience, the savings in costs far outweighs any discrepancies in quality and in most cases, we prefer the house brand to the national brands anyway. Don’t be afraid to try house brands. I’m always amazed at the grocery carts just filled with brand name products. I’m sure over a cart-full of groceries, the average consumer could easily save about $20 by choosing house brand products.
• Laundry. Two things: ONE: Buy yourself a Spray ‘n Wash Stain Stick. Keep one in every bedroom, bathroom and diaper bag—I also include one in every baby shower gift. This product WORKS. Any time Jake slops his supper, or Quinn rolls in the dirt, I smear the stick on the spot, roll up the garment and throw it in the hamper for up to a week. This prevents me from having to make up a load just to get to that stain right away. TWO: I wash everything in cold water. Everything. And everything comes out just tickety-boo. Clean, fresh and I’ve saved a good load of coin.
• Heating and Cooling. Yes, we have air conditioning, and we use it. But we keep the thermostat set relatively high at 26°C, which is just enough to keep the house cool and free from humidity. The sun pours in the back of our house, so we do tend to keep those blinds closed on hot days—Sorry, Julie! We also turn off the pilot light of our gas fireplace when not in use, not only to keep Jake’s wee fingers safe, but also to save money on our gas bill. In the winter, we wear sweaters and socks, and we crank those blinds up high to let in every available minute of sunshine.
• Hot Water. If we’re planning to be away from home for more than 48 hours, we turn off the hot water heater. I’d love to know exactly how much this saves. It’s gotta be significant. And although I haven’t started yet, I like an idea I read recently that suggests bathing your little kids in a smaller ‘storage bin’ type tub, inside your bathtub to catch splashes, to save even more water on a daily basis.
• Rain. I have just acquired a rain barrel and I plan to use it just as soon as I decide on the best downspout. I love the notion of collecting what Mother Nature provides to water both indoor and outdoor plants, wash cars, windows and more. How absolutely perfect.
• Digital Photos. We take a lot of pictures. And now with Quinn becoming an avid photographer, even more. We rarely print them, choosing instead to email favourites to friends and family, create an online gallery or even a DVD. We print only the most special pics that we know will end up in an album or frame to be admired. Despite popular assumption, I am not a scrapbooker.
  
• Gifts. Over the last several years, we have really tightened our belts on gift spending. This past Christmas, we chose to give our parents (and we have a lot of them, thanks to adoption and blended families) the gift of our time. I designed a gift card containing several dinner dates, and I am pleased to say we have stuck to just about every one. Leesa and Bob still need to come over for their May 11th meal, but Bob has been out of town and unavailable. He is forgiven. I digress. When we do give gifts, I wrap them in Kraft paper tied with jute. We sometimes choose to decorate the paper, and we always make handmade cards.
  

There are so many fun and clever ways to pinch a few pennies in your everyday lives. Go ahead—share a few with me by posting a comment before midnight EST on Friday August 1st. GIVEAWAY ALERT! The idea I like the best will receive either a pair of original bead earrings in the colour of your choice, or a 6-pack of original handmade pen and ink note cards—your choice—delivered to your door. All designed and crafted by me.

Quiet Creativity

I want so many wonderful things for my children. Don’t you? Of course I want them to be safe and healthy always. And I want them to do well in school, and their careers. But I also want them to explore—inside and out. It’s no secret that I am a creative person. I believe we all have creativity within us, as there are many ways to express it: from designing and sewing a quilt, so writing a novel, to painting on canvas... even balancing a budget, or managing a Fortune500 company requires creativity.

Quinn is a very creative seven-year old. But he is shy about it. Insecure yet, in his early years. So to bring him out of his shell a bit, and to get him out of my hair, I handed him my camera yesterday, and told him to go for it. Walk around the house and take pictures of whatever he thinks looks cool.

After supper last night (the roast pig chicken was delicious!), we connected the camera to the TV and presented a slide show to Daddy and Jake. Quinn loved describing the photographs, and explaining why he thought each one was special—a very proud boy.

I was particularly impressed to see his eye for colour, balance, perspective, proportion and composition. These are twelve of my favourites. Enjoy. And let your kids go for it too!

It’s not a pig!

At the counter, just now, as I was buttering and seasoning tonight’s chicken.

Quinn: “Gross. You’re touching the pig.”
Me: “It's not a pig.”
Quinn: “Rooster. Whatever. Chicken!”
Pause...
Quinn, as I rubbed butter into the opening of the bird: “Eww. You’re touching the bum!”
Pause...
Quinn: “I hope I don’t get the bum.”

Two pigs

Yesterday at the grocery store, after placing a roasting chicken in the cart.

Quinn: “Is that a pig?”
Me: “Nope. A chicken.”
Quinn: “That’s too bad.”

Popcorn 2¢

Summer 2007.
Business venture between Quinn and friend Dana.
Sign by Quinn.

Palette: Blush Petals

In May of 2007, the boys and I took off on a mini-getaway to Montreal. We visited the BioDome, Insectarium and Botanical Gardens.

The gardens were my favourite, although I am not known for my green thumb, and if I were to list my hobbies or interests, gardening would not be one of them. The fascination came from the colours nature so generously offers us. Pure, sincere, glorious colours.

And yah, I know... there’s that pink and green thing, yet again.

“Blush Petals”: Pantone 5175, 197, 5783, 5763

Hands

Do you ever feel like you don’t belong? For even just a moment?

I felt that way most of my life. Sounds over-dramatic, I know. This might help: I was adopted at birth. I bear very little physical resemblance to my amazing adoptive family, and as a result spent much of my childhood—especially my teen years—wondering where I came from, and who created me. Was I anything like her? Did I look like her?

Leesa and I were reunited in 2000. While she was immediately struck by my resemblance to my birth father—whom I will, sadly, never have the chance to meet—I have always been comforted by the sweet similarities she and I share, that I so longed for.

Leesa and I spent much of today beading jewelry together. Side by side in my blue room, hunched over one another’s designs and creations, sharing ideas, opinions and giggles.

And then I saw her hands. I was puzzled at first, and then surprised. Not surprised at how similar they were to mine, but at the fact I had not noticed this resemblance until now—especially considering the many moments I have spent looking for similarities in every photograph we have taken together throughout the last eight years.

I have my Mother’s hands. And I belong.



My, Leesa’s, and my sister Sarah’s hands.

Funny Faces

When vacationing to the cabin, we’re never really sure what Mother Nature has in store for us, so we need to pack enough inside activities to entertain the boys as necessary. This year, we brought two Potato Heads and a zillion body parts, Kid K’nex and Playdoh—all great for both boys, despite their age difference of five years.

One particular morning, Quinn and Jake were busy designing new Potato Head characters. Quinn’s was perfectly arranged and intact. Eyes where the eyes should be, an orange construction hat and boots to match, a lovely broad smile, black mustache and huge pink nose. He held it up high for all to see, and Jake exclaimed “Daddy!” I actually think Andrew was pleased at TJ’s perception, as Quinn’s Potato Head Construction Dude was actually kinda hawt.

Moments later, Jake mimicked Quinn’s actions, held his own creation up high, and exclaimed with pride “Mommy!”

This is what we saw...

Girl Talk: The Pill

I have two kids. We don’t want any more. Really. Stop bugging us.

Andrew is too chicken concerned about the long-term mental effects of having a vasectomy—she writes, while secretly wanting to scream GIVE ME A FUCKING BREAK!—so yes, I am back on the pill. It’s been almost two months now, and the side effects have been a constant source of joy.

Doctor reminded me I could take the pills non-stop to avoid having a period. While my periods have never been a big deal, I chose to start my second pack immediately following the first as our vacation fell in the week I would have been menstruating. [Aside: Not a big deal as I am a tampon user and evangelist. Why do so many women insist on still using pads?]

Thank you, Pill, for causing me to drop lovely brown crud, which I can only assume is the junk from the thinning lining of my uterus, for almost 4 weeks now. It’s been a real pleasure having to wear sticky, sweaty pantiliners all this time. You are so generous.

Remembering how lovely my skin was during my early years on the pill—you’ll never know just how early—I was eager to see these same results in my mid-30s, as I do still battle with the occasional zit.

Thank you, Pill, for presenting me with the loveliest of breakouts right smack in the center of my chin. I’ve been admiring the collection of little red bumps for about three weeks now. So pretty.

And best of all... condom-free snuggle time with my husband! Jake is two now, so you know how long it’s been!

Thank you, Pill, for devouring my sex drive so much so that I can’t even stand the thought of a yummy kiss. Prior to your reappearance into my bloodstream, Andrew merely had to walk in the door and have to fend me off. Poor man. I don’t know how he could stand it.

So why am I still doing this to myself? Because the damned Federal Government only covers oral contraceptives for their employees. No IUDs, no vasectomies. Just the pill. Oh, but they do cover sex changes.

Sign me up.

Tie-Dye High

Man, kids are amazing.

This morning was my second of five Kid’s Summer Craft Workshops: Tie-Dye T-shirts. I had little to no experience with tie-dye, so feared the worst, especially with the eighteen kids that were confirmed to participate. What was I thinking?

The activity went off without a hitch. Everybody arrived on time, so I only needed to explain everything once. The kids—boys and girls ranging in age from 2 to 11—all listened wonderfully. I explained the various ways of tying the elastics to achieve different results: circles, bulls eyes, lines... I showed them examples that Quinn had done at Beavers. And I told them there was going to be some waiting involved while the shirts soaked in the pre-wash, then again while the dyes cured.

I have never seen a better behaved bunch of kids.

Not 100% certain I had mixed the dyes properly, and kinda fudging the entire process (there are way too many variations on tie-dying), I was worried all the colour would wash away with the rinse, and I would quickly become the neighbourhood idiot.

I took every precaution against this: I had the kids bring 100% cotton, pre-washed, white t-shirts. They tied them while dry, then they soaked for 15 minutes in Soda Ash, which I believe is the key to colour-fastness. The kids then used squeeze bottles to apply the dyes to the shirts—using their wonderful and extraordinary imaginations to come up with glorious colours, patterns and designs. One of the older boys even incorporated a happy face, using marbles to dot out the eyes, nose and smile. So clever.

In an exercise where skin and clothes, never mind household furnishings, could have been ruined, I believe not one kid left with a stain of any sort. We all used gloves and wore grubby clothes, but more importantly, the process was explained, the kids listened, and care was taken.

I am so thrilled, and absolutely, positively, wonderstruck at these incredible kids. Brilliant. What a fantastic morning.

Tagged!

My dear friend from high school, Mélanie B has a very sweet blog about her life as a single-Mom and scientist (way cool, Mel)—One in 36 Million—and she’s involved in a game of Blogger Tag. JoeGirl is now it.

These, apparently, are the rules:
1. Link the person(s) who tagged you...
2. Mention the rules on your blog...
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours…
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them…
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

1. Done. See above.
2. Done. See above.
3. Here goes:
— I have my navel pierced
— I am adopted. Is that quirky?
— I dance in the kitchen. You already knew that.
— I kinda, sometimes, like the smell of skunk.
— Someday I would like to dye my hair blue. And maybe pink on different day.
— I need all the food labels in my pantry to be lined up perfectly, and facing English side out.
4. Gee... being so new to blogging, I don’t know if I can come up with six I could tag. I’ll try:
— One in 36 Million : See above.
— Tip Junkie : How wonderfully perfect.
— The Mom Behind the Designs : Incredible designer, Lindsay, writes about life as a WAHM.
— Lipstick Powder N Paint : A fun, fresh and funky review of all things girlicious.
— Mike Kujawski : I don’t know this guy, but I’m following him on Twitter. Seems like a brainy, web marketing guru, based in Ottawa. Yay!
— From Nat’s Brain : An Ottawa gal. I love her perspective, and her Tweet’s are always fun.
5. Will do. Geez...

So there you have it. If you have found a Blog you love, leave me a comment and I’ll check it out. Best way to promote your Blog is through word-of-mouth. So pass it on!

Palette: Cuban Tiles

Andrew and I traveled to Cuba this past April as part of his long recovery from a broken ankle and arm. This was our third trip to Cuba since, and including, our honeymoon in 1998. On every trip we schedule a day in Havana — one of our favourite cities in the world, though his traveling experience is much more vast than mine…

Art is a key, and vibrant, component of life in Havana. These tiles are merely a few in a massive wall mural. Here is a small portion of the mural — enough to demonstrate the colours, details and intricacy of its beauty.

“Cuban Tiles”: Pantone 7492, 5483, 7510, 437

Hostess and Husband

Andrew and I celebrating Canada Day on our back deck.
July 1st, 2008.

Homemade Popsicles

Quinn, last week on our back deck, enjoying a homemade grape juice Popsicle. He thought he saw a bubble in the hole of the stick, but despite blowing with all his might, nothing happened.

Packing List

Today is vacation day. We are headed to a hunt camp cabin resort in the Ottawa Valley. We have been staying in the same cabin, at the same resort, the same week in July every year for nine years. Andrew’s family has been going for almost sixty years. Of the eighteen or so cabins, our extended family now occupies five of them. It is the best week of my entire year. People think I am nuts when I say that. Then I tell them I don’t have to cook.

The family who owns the resort prepares farm-fresh meals three times a day. There is nothing for us to do except sweep the cabin, drain the cooler, apply sunscreen, and wait for the dining room bell.

Here are my Top 10 Luxury Items for the week:

10. A case of Smirnoff Ice
9. No more, and certainly no less, than one can of low-fat Pringles
8. An empty make-up bag. Who needs anything more than lip balm at a cabin?
7. Trashy celebrity magazines
6. My beading kit
5. Dental floss
4. Our His & Hers ultra plush white terry bathrobe, under which I am completely naked as I walk to the public showers.
3. Hawaiian Tropic Tanning Oil
   
2. Something new. This year, a cool colourful pair of madras shorts.
1. My down pillow, to be misted nightly with lavender linen water.

As you may have guessed — because you’re so clever — I won’t be blogging this week. I’ll be observing, and continually inspired, while I’m gone, and promise to make up for lost time when I return.

Enjoy your week!

Palette: Green Apples

Believe it or not, these huge and juicy, ripe and ready Granny Smith apples are 100%, guaranteed, “you’d have to see it to believe it”… fake. Yup. I bought them at Michael’s about four years ago, and they’ve been fooling guests—and my kids—ever since.

Our dining room is quite neutral—mushroom gray (Pratt & Lambert’s Shadow Beige 2257), as shown in the background, with mostly black furniture. The bright green punches scattered around the room, and the warmth of the baskets create a modern, fresh palette we enjoy all year round.

No fruit flies on these apples.

“Green Apples”: Pantone 7502, 465, 447, 367

Freebie: What’s for Dinner?

“See a need, fill a need”, says Mr. Bigweld—corporate nice-guy from the wonderful movie, Robots.

That’s a phrase heard a lot around here. With a brain-full of cogs and gears, Andrew is always coming up with new ideas to increase productivity and reduce cost. Quinn seems to be chugging along right beside him—determined to start a company building robots with his Dad in a few years. They’ll do it, too. Just watch.

I, on the other hand, design lists. Lists to make my life easier and more orderly. Of course, I scribble notes and stick them up all over the place, but when I can spare a few moments and tuck away with my sweethearts, Mac and Adobe, the results can be delightful.

Here’s one for you. A simple weekly menu and grocery list. Print out a few, trim them up all pretty like, and clip a stack of them to your refrigerator. Nobody will ever ask you again “What’s for dinner?”. If they do, just grab them by their baby toenail, drag them to the kitchen and point to the menu. Easy.

No more excuses.

Gusty!

It took me a while to find, but here’s proof I wasn’t making that babysitting story up. Funny… of the dozen or so My Little Pony dolls Elisha had, this is the only one I remember. Was it wrong of me to insist that we play with her ponies every single time I babysat??? I thought those temper tantrums were because she missed her Mommy.



If anybody is so inclined, “Gusty” can be purchased at synesthetick’s Etsy shop for a cool $9 US.

Interesting...

As I posted “Kill it with Kindness”, I realized my entire JoeGirl colour palette is teal and pink. It was actually inspired by a “My Little Pony” that belonged to a girl I babysat when I was a kid. Her name was Elisha, and yes—that was back in the 80s. I remember it well, as even in my early teens, I was fascinated with colour.

The pony was white with a lush, shiny, teal mane and tail. The hair in the mane was punctuated by a center stroke of shocking magenta. Absolutely gorgeous. An inspirational palette that has stuck with me for over 20 years. E-gad.

Kill it with Kindness

When we moved into our current home five years ago, the existing colour palette was horrendous. A fresh coat of paint would solve most of the conflict, but some of the colour headache came from permanent fixtures, like tiles and countertops. Elements we couldn’t afford to change just then. This was particularly true in our ensuite bathroom. Turquoise tiles and countertops, set against bubblegum pink walls. Yack.

When I am helping clients with home colour selection, and they are in a similar situation with perhaps cabinetry or flooring, I suggest they “kill it with kindness”. Make the eyesore go away, or at least blend, by using similar colours around it—resulting in a more deliberate and intended palette.

For our ensuite, there was no way we were ripping out the tiles, countertops and vinyl flooring. We just needed to make the room’s colour scheme more intentional.

The thought of 1980’s seafoam or mint green turned my stomach. More-in-tune-to-colour-than-he-will-ever-admit Andrew, suggested a spa feel for the room, using a beachglass or ocean blue. I worked with it, and surprisingly found a colour I adored. HC-147 Woodlawn Blue by Benjamin Moore. It came from the palest fleck in the ceramic tile tub surround. Updating the wall colour made the room feel larger, more tranquil, and deliberate. Now one of my favourite rooms in the house.

Before: 1980’s turquoise and pink, distracting, feels small




After: Beachglass blue, calm, more open and inviting

Balderdash

Wow. You know those times when you are certain you are right? You KNOW you are right. OF COURSE you are right. You have been 100% correct all this time. You are right, right, right.

Then you discover you were wrong.

Ouch (ego). Gulp (sheepish grin). Oops (dumb ass).

Apparently, I have been incorrectly adding spaces on either side of my em dashes throughout my entire typographical career. Today I learned this is wrong. I really don’t like the look of an em dash without the spaces, but as long as I know that is the correct typography, I will comply—and adapt. Yuck.

Here’s a quick lesson to set the record straight.

Hyphens: Used both to join words and to separate syllables, such as “sister-in-law”.

En dash: Used instead of “through” or “to”, such as “The New York–London flight is seven hours.” Also, “6–10 years”, read as “six to ten years”. When used to indicate a duration of time, a space is added on either side, such as 1:30 – 3pm.

Em dash: Indicates a pause. Can be used in place of commas, semi-colons, colons, parenthesis. No spaces on either side!

Further details and guidelines can be found on Wikipedia’s Dash page.

Other typographical errors that send me reeling:

• Using a foot mark ( ' ) instead of an apostrophe, or single quotation mark ( ‘ or ’ )
  
• Using an inch mark ( " ) instead of a double quotation mark ( “ or ” )
• Double spaces after a period.
• Using multiple periods—and often more than three—instead of an ellipse ( … )

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
On a personal note, Quinn is feeling much better today. I am tear-stained after a blow-out with my Mother. Now THAT doesn’t happen very often.

... and now it is Monday.

My Sunday was nice. Though I aspired to do as many things on yesterday’s Feel Good To Do List as I could, I only completed six of the 15 suggested:

• I hugged Andrew, Quinn and Jake. Lots.
  
• I danced. By myself, as usual.
  
• I tickled the boys and made them laugh. Even Andrew.
  
• I wrote a birthday greeting to my friend Laurence.
  
• I sang. I always sing.
  
• I made grape juice Popsicles with Quinn, but haven’t eaten one yet.
  

Today’s bead workshop went off without a hitch. Well, almost. Poor Quinn has come down with something, and spent the day either in his bed or on the sofa. Fever, aches, nausea. Hope this passes quickly, and without affecting anybody else.

Also managed to submit the first draft, of the second of three documents to my graphic design client. A day or two earlier than promised. Awesome.

A rather bland entry tonight. I apologize. I promise to be more witty (wittier?) tomorrow.
Wish me a restful, vomit-free night... Fingers crossed.

Rise and Shine!

Sunday is my sleep-in day. Andrew lets me lay in bed while he entertains the boys. Ah, sweet Sunday. I look so forward to it every Saturday night. I even stayed up extra late last night, to ensure I enjoyed this morning’s extra sleep time.

Clearly, I’m not sleeping. I’ve been awake since 6:30am thinking about everything I need to do this week. Design contract client is back from holidays. I’d better get cracking. Beading workshop for ten kids tomorrow. Need more supplies and where the heck are they all going to sit? What are we having for supper tonight? Did I ever fold Friday’s laundry? Is it still in the dryer?

Problem is, I let this happen just about every Sunday morning. I become fixated on a few pending issues and allow them to rattle around in my head, preventing me from — you guessed it — sleeping in. I need to make Sunday less of a worry/plan-ahead day, and more of a rest/recover day.

So here’s my challenge, and I am inviting you to join me.

Let’s check off as many of the items on this Feel Good To Do List before the end of the day. It’s early — we have a lot of time. Post comments later with your successes.

Enjoy your Sunday.

• Give somebody a hug and mean it. Of course pets count.
• Dance. By yourself, with your kids or even better, with your partner.
• Run through the sprinkler.
• Make somebody laugh. Tell a joke, tickle them, do something unexpected.
• Go for a 20-minute walk. Alone.
• Write a letter to someone special. Pen and paper.
• Make a list of TEN things you are thankful for.
• Fix something that is broken in 30 minutes or less.
  
• Take a family photo.
• Sing. In the shower, in the car, in tune or not.
  
• Clean out the junk drawer(s).
• Find TEN things to give away.
• Bake something scrumptious.
• Draw a self-portrait.
• Eat a Popsicle.
  

G is for Gentle

Since our first son Quinn was born just over seven years ago, we have taught him to be GENTLE. Don’t bite Mommy when she’s nursing you. Don’t pull Daddy’s chest hair. Flat hands when petting the dog. Hug, don’t hurt.

But GENTLE extends well beyond physical aspects. We want our children to be gentle with their hands, their heads and their hearts as well.

I'm sitting at my desk looking out onto the front lawn. It is gorgeous outside. Sunny and hot. I am trying to focus on my current contract, but as I wrote yesterday, I am easily distracted.

Quinn and his friend are playing in the Mt. Tiki Super Soaker he received for his birthday. It shoots water straight up, with intense pressure, at unknown intervals. Scares the shit out of the kids, and makes them laugh hysterically. Fun to watch.

But after only a few minutes playing with the thing as it was intended, new methods were devised. Picking it up and aiming it at things (house, car, each other). Turning it upside down and blasting the grass out of the soil. Sitting on it in the hopes it will clean out their colons, I guess.

I just want my kids to be GENTLE. With everyone and everything. I don't want them wrecking lawns, garage doors, gardens and least of all bums.

Where did I go wrong?

Palette: Sips of Summer

Proof that inspiration really can be found anywhere.

I was loading the dishwasher last weekend and there it was — a delightfully fresh palette for the early days of Summer (ignore the sour milk residue and fermented apple juice drippings).

Cool, watery blues. Warm, sunshine yellows. Inspired thoughts of kiddie pools and Popsicles, beach umbrellas and picnics in the sand.

“Sips of Summer”: Pantone 298, 2935, 123, 715

Fascination with procrastination

I was supposed to be nose-deep in contract graphic design work today. Deadline work. Arrangements were made so that I would have the entire day to myself to focus. FOCUS.

And I did work. As much as I possibly could when not fighting off the warty distractions that kept coming into my office and attacking my left earlobe.

Here are the Top Ten Mundane Things I Did Today.

10. Stocked the bar fridge.
9. Ordered new cheques.
8. Danced. In the kitchen. By myself.
   
7. Danced some more.
6. Bleached the recycling bins.
5. Shuffled papers.
4. Updated my Twitter status.
3. Snipped the hideous flowers out of the Hostas.
2. Looked for the frog who had been napping on our twig chair yesterday. Not there.
1. Cleaned the hair out of my brush.
   

I wasn’t looking at her shoulders.

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Greetings, 892.

Canada turned 141 today. According to tonight’s 11 o’clock CTV news, July 1st is the most popular day of the year for people to become Canadian citizens. Today’s number was 892. Impressive. Most people quoted “freedom” as the number one reason to “turn Canadian”.

Here are my Top Ten Reasons to become a Canadian, or to appreciate already being one!

10. Ketchup potato chips.
9. Fewer boundaries to memorize.
8. Even if you are in the wrong, the other person will always apologize.
7. Wide, open spaces right outside your door.
6. Anne Murray, Bryan Adams and/or The Guess Who. Your choice.
5. Metric.
4. Zed.
3. The letter ‘u’ (ie. colour, humour, neighbour)
2. Hockey.
1. It’s true... we really are the nicest people on the planet.

Happy Canada Day!