blue_lotus13 | Entries tagged with family

Since it's father's day, I might as well write about a cool project that my father is involved with.

My dad is working with a few other people to set up a Bikes for humanity chapter in Saskatoon.

Every year, hundreds of North Americans and Europeans get rid of bikes as they upgrade to new ones. Many people have unused bikes sitting around in their storage sheds or garages. Bikes for humanity chapters collect these bikes and then take them to villages in Africa.

Some of the groups that benefit from bike distribution include:

Women, who typically spend more time walking than men through performing domestic duties like gathering food, water and firewood.
Children, who face long walks to school and arrive too tired to learn, or simply don't attend
Healthcare workers, who often walk long distances to provide medication and counselling to people living with HIV/AIDS and malaria in their homes
Unemployed people, who can start bike shops, delivery businesses, tourism ventures or spin off projects making trailers, racks

My father has already collected 15 bikes in Saskatoon, and will soon be starting his campaign to get more bikes and to get these bikes to Africa.

I don't know all the details yet, but please check out- Bikes for humanity

My chef cousin is marrying her chef boyfriend and they're moving to Spain together.

Perhaps creativity and a love for adventure run in the genes...

1. I got my tax return and a freelance cheque yesterday. Plans include paying down some debt and a new bike!

2. Ian and I got Corb Lund tickets through work. Since we had four, we were able to offer two to my friend James so that he can attend. Apparently he loves Corb, so this is all good.

3. I went to a practice for Power of the Land last niht. We are taking the show on tour and will be presenting it in Dawson Creek this weekend. I am very excited and happy that we are able to take this show on the road.

4. My mom is awesome. My second guitar will soon be joining me up here. It's been living in Saskatoon with the parentals for the past few years. Mom looked at the case and noticed that it was severely cracked and broken. Since she is the best mother in the world, she went out and bought a new case. She also bought me some new Chinese bowls and dried tamarind, since I have become obsessed with it ever since I came back from the Philippines and haven't really seen any here.

Bad-
I slept like absolute crap. I woke up numerous times and just want to go back to bed.

2007 was a big year for me, mostly because I released my first book and moved. It wasn't an easy year, but in retrospect, there were a lot of amazing things that happened.

( month )

I haven't felt like updating this holiday, but I've managed to keep busy.

Movies watched- Harold and Maude, The Magnificent Seven, Eastern Promises, The Namesake and La Vie en Rose (I hated La Vie en Rose, but liked all the rest of these movies)

Books read- to come.

People seen- ramona, karen, my cousin and her husband, family friends, jill (by chance) prosad, vince, and a host of other random people. I've managed about one visit a day.

Choice food consumed- shrimp spring rolls, cappuchino, dragonfruit, pineapple, and dinner at family friends'.

Number of times I've had coffee at the Broadway Roastery= 3

Sales hit= 2

Work done= none

Dogs played with= 3. Most of my time has been spent with Fergus.

Cd stores visited= 4 (There are no good cd stores in GP)

Number of times that I've said- "Gee, Saskatoon is booming" or "Wow, I'm excited about my trip" = countless

Dooce's post on mental illness and medication made me tear up

Thanks for writing this post, Heather. I believe in every single word, and I wouldn't be here today if not for medication, therapy and the strength and support of my friends and family.

I am finally home in Saskatoon.

The flight yesterday was a bit of a gong show. I got to the Grande Prairie airport on time, only to discover that my flight was delayed by two hours. Unfortunately I had paid for parking, so I was unable to leave and go do something else, and had to stay at the airport until the flight finally left.

Due to the delay, I missed my connecting flight in Calgary. Westjet was really good about this. They stationed all the connecting passengers at the front of the plane so we could get off first and had someone meet us and direct us to the connecting counter. I was booked on the next flight to Saskatoon, and was immediately given my new boarding pass and a ten dollar meal voucher. Westjet also had a free customer phone that I could use to call my parents to tell them I would be late.

I got on the next plane to Saskatoon, but we were unable to leave on time because we were waiting for connecting passengers from Abbotsford, and we had to sit in the plane, on the runway for an extra half hour.

I arrived home 3 hours later than planned. Ugh.
****
I didn't bring any work with me, and left my computer at home to give myself a break. I have already taken Fergus for a walk, chatted with the parentals, and admired my dad's stylish new glasses. Today I am going for a haircut, and then Mom and I are going to see the Blue Man Group at Sask place. Tomorrow will involve dim sum (Hallelujah!) and a visit with my friend Heather. I might pick up a movie to watch with the parentals as well. The parentals have already showered me with books from their collection. It's good to be home :)

****
There is a big ad with my name and picture on it in the Star Phoenix, and my name appeared in an ad in the book section of the Globe and Mail. Both ads are promoting my reading. Very exciting!

Toronto launch photos

Lots of things missing, as the batteries in my camera kept dying!

I'm in Toronto right now.

Dymph and I took an early morning flight, which meant we had to get up at 5:30 in the morning, which blew. I arrived in TO at 2:30, then had to wait around for my mom to arrive on a plane an hour later. Her flight was supremely late and only got in at 5:00 due to some sort of medical emergency on the plane. After that, we took a cab downtown where I was delivered to the casa of [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com]. We ate thai food and vegged and I babbled in my state of exhaustation.

Today is the actual launch, launch and I need to find something to do before then. I might just do nothing and then head over to that area early. We shall see.

I haven't been to TO in 7 years.

So I'm in Calgary. The book was launched last night. It was honestly one of the most surreal experiences I have ever had in my life.

I flew into Calgary on Wednesday afternoon. My friend Heather, who has been a good friend for 20 years, picked me up at the airport and took me out to supper at a vegetarian place called "The Coup." I sat around in the hipster restaurant and chatted with Heather and thought about how much I love bigger cities. Love, love, love them!

After this, Heather's good friend joined us and we went to her house where I discovered that I have a love of Strongbow.

****
Yesterday morning, Mom and Dad and family friend Duane came and picked me up and we walked down to Chinatown and went for dim sum so I could satisfy my cravings. Then we walked to Pages on Kensington where I took dorky photos of my book in the window of the store and on the shelf in the store and all sorts of other things. I then went to Heather's and got ready for book launch activities.
***
The launch was held at the Memorial Park library, which was the first library in the province, built in 1912. It was gorgeous! We got there early and I got to meet my publishers for the first time. I wandered around feeling sort of lost for the whole beginning. Then someone asked me to sign a book for them, and I fumbled around because I didn't have a pen! It was really embarassing. I ended up grabbing one. My reading was first and everyone said nice things about me and the book and the reading went well. Dymphny read next and then we had intermission. My fellow author Patria, whose first book that I loved, told me she loved the book and that I had a profile like a Greek goddess. I think that's one of the nicest things that's ever been said to me.

Anyway, I signed about 30 books for people and met people and talked to them and they told me how they were touched by various poems etc, etc, which was surreal as hell. The whole night was good, but I was exhausted afterward, so Heather and I went home and watched CSI, which I'd never seen before. I have a big old crush on Archie Kao.

The launch rocked, but oh my god, it was surreal and strange.

Current Location: the house cafe on kensington

There are now two finches living in our home in East Van. One is named Mr. T and the other is named Sweet Pearl something or other. They are a little noisy, but sort of cute.

My parents are now the proud people of a small cairn terrier named Fergus. (I do not believe in using the word owner- I prefer using the word "person" or "people".) He is black and red with big ears and a loud voice. My father is already in love with him and says he looks happy all of the time. I cannot wait to meet him.

My parents are off to Edmonton to pick up their new puppy today. I don't think I can adequately express my level of excitement!!

Last night, I happened to watch "Mysterious Skin", which I think is one of the most disturbing films that I've watched in a LONG time. The acting was excellent and I'm completely in love with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who completely stole the movie. I actually wanted to turn the movie off about half an hour in, but I was completely pulled into the story and needed to know what happened. I thought it was brilliant, but I'll just warn you that it contains pretty graphic sexual abuse. The director, Gregg Araki, manages to show this abuse without actually showing too much, which allows the audience to fill in the blanks, and apparently saved child actors from having to witness/do too much.

But I still felt EXTREMELY disturbed and a bit dirty when I was done watching the movie. (I thought I'd read the book, but it turned out that I hadn't.)

( talked to my parents about what happened )

I spent yesterday doing laundry and watching "Memento" for film class. I hated "Memento" the first time I saw it because I didn't understand it. This time, I read some film theory before I watched it, and was able to get a handle on the plot and story. It's still not the kind of movie that I particularly enjoy, but I appreciated it a lot more. I got the new Kinnie Starr cd and I'm digging it. One of the songs is called "Sex on the prairies", which cracked me up. I start work late today because we're holding our fundraiser tonight which should be fun. There will be good food, a gypsy jazz band, and a dance showcase featuring Irish dancers, an Indian classical dancer and some ballet. I'm just supposed to stick around to help out with the volunteers and represent the staff.

I'm feeling a bit better today as I think I have rehydrated myself. I drank over a little and a half of ginger ale, and got a decent sleep. My eyes feel more normal today, and I no longer have such a bad headache from crying.

( more emotional stuff about my family and our dogs )

Current Mood: sad

My dad called me tonight. My parents have to have McGregor put to sleep because his kidneys are failing. They have basically stopped working. This all started Friday, and they took him to the vet today and the vet did a urine sample. There is nothing we can do. He is not in a lot of pain yet, but he is definitely depressed and stopped eating over the weekend.

My family does not believe in keeping animals in pain and my dad will be having him put down tomorrow.

I trust my parents, but that doesn't mean that I'm not terribly, terribly sad. My mom and dad were both crying on the phone when they told me.

McGregor was only three years old. He was a good dog and he was greatly, greatly loved.

B* is on his way over. I'm assuming there will be some cuddling to go with my tears tonight. Possibly some gelato as well.

Current Mood: sad

I only have about a day and a half left in Saskatoon before I head back to Vancouver. It's been a good break. I feel rested and refreshed, and I'm looking forward to tulips and cherry blossoms, doing a little weeding in the garden and getting pumped about B*'s appearance on Jeopardy.

But I will miss my parents, who are also two of my very good friends. I really enjoy them. However, we can call or e-mail back and forth, as can [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com] and I.

I'm super sad about leaving McGregor. We've bonded again in the short time I've been here. This morning, he was waiting outside the bathroom door for me when I got out of the shower and my heart just about melted when I saw his sweet face.

I tried to take some pictures of him on my mom's camera, but I can't get her computer to read it. I'll have to try again using my dad's digita.

Yesterday Mom and I went shopping and I did relatively well. I have come to the conclusion that I suffer a form of shopping anxiety. I can only handle shopping for clothes for a while before I need to stop. By contrast, Mom is a power shopper who seriously could have been a clothes coordinator on a show like "What not to wear?"

Part of the reason I get so anxious when shopping is because clothes are so damn expensive and I have a huge amount of guilt when I buy anything, even if it's something that I need.

However, yesterday we managed to pick out a wide variety of outfits including a gorgeous brown suit, casual pants, a linen top and a very feminine sea green tank.

***
Last night Mom and I watched "The Squid and the Whale". I can see why this movie was nominated for so many screenplay awards as the script and the acting were both phenomenal. I can't say that I enjoyed the film as it's extremely painful to watch. The premise of the story is that two writers separate, and in the process, they act like complete imbeciles and really damage their kids. I felt so bad for the children that I actually cried. I think this movie would be even more painful if a person was the child of divorced parents. Everyone involved with the film was fantastic, including little Owen Kline, who is the son of Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates. This was his first role, and he was great.

I'm back. I like Seattle. I like vacations.

We left on the train on Friday night. At customs, the agent asked me how long I was in Indonesia, where I'd worked and who I had been working for. I was a little stunned by the questioning, but just gave the answers even though I was quite nervous.

Our train was a bit late getting in. Apparently the train traffic had been slowed from mud slides along the route earlier that day. I noticed that people really like to booze it up on the train as there were a lot of people drinking.

The Seattle train station is one of the most dingiest train stations that I've ever been in in my life. It's downright ugly and has apparently been under renovation for years.

My cousin and his wife picked us up and ferried us over to their home in Phinney Ridge. For some reason, I'd reasoned that they lived in Capitol Hill, since everyone else I know lives there. They actually live a few blocks away from the zoo, in a nice house with lots of hardwood and a loft, which I would use for my writing if the house was mine.

We got to sleep in a down filled feather bed, which was comfy and cozy and very hard to get out of.

On Saturday, Cousin P and L took us to Seattle Centre, where we walked around for a bit before we met up with [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com] to visit the Science Fiction Museum. If you're a fan of science fiction or pop culture, I highly recommend this museum. The different levels are decorated to look like the insides of space ships and there are a variety of interesting displays including one on science fiction themes throughout history, a Sci Fi hall of fame, spotlights on Mars, robots and creatures and all kinds of fascinating things. There's an actual model of the Death Star and a "life-size" statue of the Queen from Alien, which was sort of scary. You can also see Star Trek and Star Wars memorabilia and all sorts of books and movie memorabilia. Excellent.

I thought of [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com] in the gift shop, because they were selling unis that read, "Jedi in Training pants." Very, very cute.

After this, we were quite exhausted from info overload, so we went back to Capitol Hill to Victrola Coffee shop for a rest before walking up to the Seattle Asian Art museum.

Once again, I arrived at the museum one hour before closing, but we decided not to rush through the museum. My priority was seeing the Buddhist art, which was quite enjoyable. The exhibit included a lot of Japanese Buddhist art, which was new for me because I'm more familiar with Chinese and Tibetan Buddhist art. After resting for a while, we went back downtown to wander around and eat at the Pike Street Pub. We hit Barnes and Noble before taking the bus home, where I collasped almost immediately.

On Sunday, I had to do an interview with Asian-American writer Lensey Namioka . Lensey is 77 and has published 23 books. She is of Chinese descent, but is married to a Japanese man and so she writes about modern and historical stories about Chinese and Japanese characters. She writes picture books, books for young children and teenagers. We had a great talk and she was both interesting and funny.

After this, I met up with [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com]. We went for a three hour long lunch, during which we caught up and talked about all kinds of things. She dropped me off at home after taking me by the Troll that lives under the bridge. Seattle puts a lot of money into public art and so there's some great pieces, like this mythical troll that's rising out of the ground, and a statue of Jimi Hendrix.

I visited with my cousin and L for a while before the four of us went out to Typhoon for Thai food. We came back home, watched part of the Olympic closing ceremonies and went to bed.

B* and I caught the train back today. It was delayed again, but wasn't particularly unpleasant. I got to watch "Elizabethtown", which was a great movie to watch on the train, because it wasn't very good. I alternated between watching the movie, and looking out the window at the beach and the ocean.

Now I'm home, relaxed and trying to figure out what I have to accomplish this week. I really like Seattle; it's a nice, mellow and laidback city. For some reason, it feels a lot smaller than Vancouver, even though I think they're about the same size.

I'm very close to my parents and so I talk to them on the phone several times a week. Yesterday I phoned my dad.

Me- What's up?

Dad- (Pause) I'm going to Paris on Wednesday.

Me- WHAT?

Dad- I'm going with D. When he first asked me, I said, "I can't. I have a wife and a small dog to think about." But then your mom told me I should go, so I'm going.

Dad explained that his friend D, who used to work for Air Canada, called and asked him if he wanted to go to Paris. Since D. worked for the airline, he can still fly for next to nothing. D. is bringing his 85-year-old ex-mother in law to Paris, and asked Dad to come along. So my dad will be staying in the family apartment with D. and his ex-wife's relatives. D. still maintains a good relationship with the ex-inlaws, and Dad has even stayed in Paris with them before.

After his two weeks in Paris, Dad will be returning to Saskatoon, where he will have a visit from his daughter. After this, the rambling man will be heading to the Grand Canyon and the Four Corners, where he plans to drive around and camp with D. I've recently begun a campaign to convince my father to take me up North, as I've always wanted to go to Alaska or even Northern B.C.

In other travelling news, B* and I are leaving for Seattle this evening. We're taking the train down, and will be staying with my cousin. Our itinerary is jam packed full, but I'm sure it will be fun. Tomorrow, we're planning a pilgrimage to Science Fiction Museum .

I got the coolest package from my mom. She decided to send me a little care package along with my T-4 and a bunch of other stuff. She included a Valentine's day box with a shirt, underwear, and candies, an electric Winnie the Pooh toothbrush, and a sweater with bling on it. I also got a Chinese New Year card with chocolate Chinese coins and lucky money.

I worked 9.5 hours yesterday on about 6 hours of sleep. I do not recommend this, but at least I had a great sleep last night. I slept through the night, which is rare for me as I have a lot of sleep issues.

In other news, I'm going home!! Mom booked my ticket for March 20. I'm not sure when I'm returning yet, as I may drive to Calgary with my father, who is heading there to pick up a friend. Dad and the friend will then be going camping near the Grand Canyon and the four States.

I have been craving a trip home for a while. Last night, I was thinking about postponing it, but the thought made me feel panicked. I have been working very hard since September, and even over Christmas, I only took 3 days off. I need a vacation, but I also need to spend some quality time with my parents, my dog and the big prairie sky.

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lex

August 2015

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Canadian girl out and aboot

Entries tagged with family

Bikes for humanity

Perhaps it's genetic....

The good and one bad

Year in Review

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She said it first

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Book launch goodness...

Birds and dogs...

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Very sad, very bad news...

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The travelling family...

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August 2015

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