Canadian girl out and aboot

I got to see two friends that I didn't expect to see on my Saskatoon trip. My cousin lives in Marsden, which is en route between Edmonton and Saskatoon. Marsden is only about 1,000 people. On one trip home, I stopped in at the municipality office. I had thought that my cousin worked there. I learned from the people working there that she actually works in the office of a town about 20 minutes away. I recounted my attempted visit to her on facebook chat, and she told me that she was home and had Sesame Street characters in the yard in front of her house. So on my way home this time, I decided to drive around the town and find her. For some reason, my mind had decided that there were Mickey Mouse characters in front of her home, so I drove around the town looking for them. Finally, I found a house with Sesame street characters and chalk drawings on the driveway. I reasoned that this family had kids and definitely would know my cousin, since the town is so small. Fortunately (as you might have guessed), this turned out to be her house and we got to visit for about half an hour. It was a pretty awesome surprise for her :)


My second surprise was from [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com], who is spending June and July in Moose Jaw. She posted on facebook that she and some friends were planning to drive to Saskatoon to see Antony and Cleopatra. I was really excited about this, and so I got to meet up with her and her friends and chat with her before the show. I love randomly seeing friends! And I was very happy to finally see a production of Antony and Cleopatra. I learned that the full length play is difficult to stage and clocks in at about 4 hours. The version we saw was about 2 hours and focussed more on the romantic intrigue than the political drama. Definitely worth it.

I am ready to go back to Edmonton. My brother has this nasty plague and we actually sprayed the entire computer after he was done coughing his gross germs all over it. I really don't want this plague.

I am also feeling the need for my own space and routine. It has been a lovely visit, but I am starting to go a bit stir crazy and want to get home.

I have also been SLEEPING since I got home. We're talking hours of sleep, without any medication. This is fantastic, and I hope it continues when I get back to Edmonton.

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like I will be able to drive home before Thursday, due to the weather and winter storms. Thursday is still up in the air. I just need to keep on checking the weather reports and forecasts every day.

I'm watching the election results and had to turn it off because it was making me feel ill. I'm wondering who all these Conservatives are, as I know a lot of people and few, if any of them, voted Conservative. It makes me wonder.

Let's talk about something else. I had a wonderful visit home. I picked up my brother on Friday and we drove home. My parents made us a lovely supper and my Dad, my bro and the bro's gf went to see "Body of Lies" Friday night. It was pretty good, but not amazing. Leo had skeevy facial hair and brown contacts and Russell Crowe had gained at least 25 pounds.

On Saturday, my dad and I went for lunch and then I came home and did some work and went shopping for pants. My bro cooked an Asian supper for the entire family and his gf. He made tempura shrimp, beef satay, stir fried veggies, duck and Chinese greens with garlic. My bro is a pretty amazing cook who doesn't get a lot of opportunity to use his culinary skills. We also enjoyed some wine, which was pretty awesome.

Sunday I stayed home for most of the day and then we went to a family friend's house for Thanksgiving supper. It was quite the event as more than 25 people were present. [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com] was in town working the election, so I sprang her for a little bit and she joined us, which was cool. I got to visit with a lot of my extended family friends, and then I drove her back to the place where she was staying and we got to catch up a bit.

Monday I went for coffee with my friend Heather and then went to see "The Duchess" with my mom and her friend. This film is really quite well done, and will probably get Oscar nominations. Keira Knightley was fantastic, as was Ralph Fiennes. It's also an interesting story, with good acting and beautiful scenery and set design. If you're at all into period pieces, I would highly recommend this one. I liked it more than I expected to.

I spent the night at home, watching tv and hanging with my little dog. I spent a lot of time with Fergus, who is becoming quite the sweet little dog. He just likes to hang out and cuddle, and we went for a few walks over the weekend. I'm hoping he can come visit me soon. This morning, I called his name while I was lying in bed, and he came running up the stairs, jumped on the bed and then snuggled in for a little nap with me. He's becoming a very affectionate little guy as he gets older.

I drove home today and did the entire trip in less than six hours. It's nice to be back in my own space, even if I've got a lot to do the next couple of days. I'm going to a poetry reading tomorrow night, which should be fun.

While googling something else related to Johnny Cash and the prairies, I discovered that the Man in Black had actually written a love song about a girl in Saskatoon!

Girl in Saskatoon lyrics

Why didn't I know about this?

Fire breaks out at Mendel art gallery

This is the major art gallery in Saskatoon. Fortunately, no art was damaged and no one was hurt.

Last spring, I began reading the 100 mile diet series in thetyee.ca . I found the concept interesting, but shook my head with disbelief as I tried to imagine this concept practiced in other parts of Canada.

Lo and behold, I find that a woman I know has embarked on the Saskatchewan only diet . It turns out that you can get most things in Saskatchewan.

Fans of food or lovers of prairie, take note. There are featured recipes as well.