a belgian secret

Okay, so, after showing Court the other day my buttonhole book, and to very little praise, might I add, I've decided to post pictures of the second type of binding that I learned a few weekends ago. Above are two examples of "Secret Belgian Binding" that I've made at home the past week. I've pretty much created a monster, and if you ask, I will not admit the total monetary investment that I have made in my new hobby.

Now, the story behind the name is much less elusive than the name suggests (some librarian at some large library found an example of this type of binding in some basement box and, realizing it was from Belgium, said something along the lines of 'oh, you know those Belgians and their secrets,' as if this is some kind of known fact), this binding produces a simple and sturdy little book. I used chiogami paper for the cover of the smaller book and Japanese tissue paper for the cover of the larger. Both are bound with waxed linen thread. Each has eight leaves, are blank, and would be good for writing. Well, that's just my opinion.

I'm pretty proud of these little mofos. Please act surprised on Christmas.

Amazing Race 11? Best Season Ever?

Okay, okay, I'll admit it. I watch Reality TV. I watch Survivor. In residence, I watched Temptation Island. With a dedication that was much greater than that turned towards my education. I even like The Apprentice, well, the first couple of seasons anyway.

But the show I really like is Amazing Race. Last season, I gave my heart to the Hippies. I love love love them. And I was so glad that they won $1 million. But, they aren't my favourite team. My favourite team was...ready?...Rob and Amber. Damn, they were awesome. Rob was just so good at the game. And Amber, well, she's pretty. But the thing is: they actually communicated like a couple. They never fought, they encouraged each other, they were partners. Unlike some teams that made me cringe in my comfy sofa chair when watching.

What is the point of this? That there's going to be an All Star edition of Amazing Race. Next Spring. And Rob and Amber are confirmed. No word on my hippies yet, but I have not given up hope. I promise you, I will be watching every single second.

Also, I just watched the preview for the next episode of Veronica Mars. (Thanks a lot Alex, you tease!) Better than Christmas.

Talent, Lifer or Mandarin?

I'm a Mandarin!

You're an intellectual, and you've worked hard to get where you are now. You're a strong believer in education, and you think many of the world's problems could be solved if people were more informed and more rational. You have no tolerance for sloppy or lazy thinking. It frustrates you when people who are ignorant or dishonest rise to positions of power. You believe that people can make a difference in the world, and you're determined to try.

Talent: 46%
Lifer: 44%
Mandarin: 54%

Take the Talent, Lifer, or Mandarin quiz.

of course, the problem with all of this is the simple fact that I still don't really know what a Mandarin is. The orange? The language? Some juicy language drink?

Al Schmore

I think we might be getting suckered. By Al Gore. Whom everyone seems to think is some kind of hero because he's the star of the supposedly eco-friendly documentary "An Inconvienient Truth." I hate this movie. Not because its boring (which it is) or because it lacks flashing editing (which it does), but because it just doesn't make sense.

Al Gore drives around in an SUV. He jetsets across the world. Talk about two polluting forms of travel. Heck, his family money comes tabacco and cattle farming, two of the most environmentally invasive crops (well, if cattle are grown) known to the world. hello methane! Although he talks the talk, he does very little walking. What I would have loved to see is him jumping in his hybrid, or, heaven forbid, taking public transit. If he's going to set an example, he could at least do so for the span of the movie. Now, I know you are going to say that's he's been involved with this cause (cause?) for decades. I don't care. It means even less to me if someone preaches and then keeps on sinning.

Also, dude, what's with those graphs? They don't even have axis labels! It means nothing without values! Please. I've taken intro to statistics. I know my shit. Also, its lovely to present temperature graphs for the last millenium (which is, I know, all we've got) but seriously. The world is what? Billions of years old? Its a little difficult to conclusively prove anything with such limited scale. I get it, its the best we can do. But still. I know, I am making myself sound like a sceptic. I am not. I truly believe that human beings are doing terrible things to the planet. I really do think that we need to lessen the impact of our foot prints. I do think that we are going to end up killing our species and probably take along a lot of other species with us. Deep down, I'm even terrified that this is going to happen within the next couple of generations. Or our generation. Or tomorrow. What I dislike are silly graphs that don't really reflect anything. Graphs are just too easy to manipulate.

But I am really sick that Al Gore gets all the credit for being some kind of environmental advocacy genius when there's tonnes of hardworking Americans/Canadians who have spent lifetimes dedicated to actually living what they believe. They are the examples. Not the man who "used to be the next president of the United States." Which is a line that should have been absolutely hilarious and which he couldn't even pull off. I know I was supposed to laugh, but I just couldn't.

Now, all that being said, at least this movie has gotten people talking. Which is so much better than nothing at all, especially if it leads to greater awareness and to more action towards reduction. Even more so if it leads to cleaner energy sources. I mean, we aren't all bad. Life expectancy is high, diseases are being cured, technology is rampant...we just need to work on creating more balance. And no, I have no idea how that will actually happen.

My faculty is having an auction for charity this year. I actually think its a great idea. We are all asked to donate things to be auctionned off. for myself, having just learned to bind books (okay, only two styles), I am going to donate one of those. They are homemade, yes, but they look great. My room mate is donating view master slides of the Library of Congress. She bought them on ebay. After hearing about the auction, our book binding session leader offered us a spot in one of her workshops. I really love the idea, especially at Christmas, of giving a little something to people who do not have so much.

But what I do not like is the choice of charity that the faculty made. We are donating the profits to Sick Kids. I get it: no one likes a sick child. i know. but. they are a huge corporation with a huge budget for fundraising and for raising public awareness of the funds they need. And, they often pay their fundraisers. what, you think those people with the binders on every street corner are doing it out of the goodness of their hearts? I think not. My point is this. They have fundraisers. Could we not have chosen a charity that perhaps needed the assistance a little more? A local charity? Perhaps even one related to libraries? I would even feel better if we were donating a collection of books to the Sick Kids library. Or, we could subscribe to an electronic database on behalf of one of the public libraries. Or we could donate to Librarians Without Borders, a venture launched by students at the Western. We could have done something that was a little more in tune with, well, us. It would be nice to see library students raising awareness , and advocating for, library needs and library users. who knew I was so keen, hey?

That being said, Sick Kids is a better charity than no charity, and I am happy to help out.

we lost our semi-finals volleyball game last night. we got beat pretty bad. they were so good, it was like not only were they hitting the ball back to us, hard, they were placing it as well. see, you can be okay volleyball (me), very good at volleyball (half our team), and excellent at volleyball (michelle and chris). I just pray the ball goes back over to the other side. Michelle and Chris make it look very very easy. and pretty. I am so so jealous. the other team, last night, was of this caliber. meh, maybe not. they had this one guy who spiked it so hard, I had to be impressed. and one guy, you in the red shirt I am looking at you...he could just see it and place it wherever. that kind of skill requires admiration. it was funny too, cause he wasn't tall or super athletic. he was just smart. which, really, is the most dangerous kind of athlete of all.

Tonight, Jarrod and I are meeting my parents for Korean Barbecue. It is perhaps the most delicious experience on the planet. well, other than gorging one's self at mandarin, but my recent clothes shopping experience has pretty much kiboshed that for the near future. basically, you sit at a table with a grill in the middle of it. and then you proceed to cook your own meat. its all you can eat, its delicious, and its fresh. now, you can upgrade to lamb and shrimp, however, really, all you want is the chicken and beef. so don't do it. you'll be stuffed. and somehow, since it isn't carbs, you don't feel to stuffed. just that heavy kind of full that isn't all that bad.

We recieved in our inbox today an email about a new decision: the admissions committee for the Faculty of Information Studies, University of Toronto is debating whether or not to add a student to the "deciding who gets in" mix. We were asked to, informally, choose whethe we were yay or nay on having a student representative on the committee.

I do not think that there should be a student on the admissions committee. At first glance, there seems to many reasons why a student should be on the committee. They are the ones who are experiencing the process--they are fresh out of school, they are living the challenges of applications, they know how difficult it is to attain a certain academic schedule while maintaining other aspects of life. Having been there, and quite recently, it seems to make sense that a student would be a welcome addition to the admissions committee.

Unfortunately, it is for precisely those reasons that a student would be a terrible idea. My fellow students are no more qualified to choose who enters our program than I am. I am quite happy to leave it to professors (who are interested in being on the committee, but that's a whole other can of worms) with experience, both in life and in education, to choose who enters the program. I have to think they might know a little something more than us.

Also, the point was suggested that perhaps we should get used to peer to peer evaluation. Which is absolutely true. If we were evaluating professional articles set to paper with the intention of being reviewed. This is personal character that we are talking about, private things that need not be made public and that need not be known by peers. There is a difference between personal scholarship and private reference letters, private appeals for acceptance, and of course, personal grade transcripts (especially from that year in res where no school work was done!). The committee is not around for Pub Nights, or study groups, the committee is a professional group, not of peers, but of superiors.

Someone suggested that the acceptance process was akin to the hiring process and that this would be good experience for one's future professional life. However, there are a few major differences. 1) You are not hired by your fellow level one employees. You are hired by someone who is ahead of you, who's been through it before. 2) The manager who does the hiring, or the department, is trained to do so. Plus, they have their own professional reputation to maintain. Their employees are a reflection of themselves and they could be putting their own reputation on the line when hiring. This is also exactly why I hate group work as students. There is no chain of command, no "boss," no "project manager," there is no one to ensure someone stays on track because it will be their butt if someone does not. If we want to talk about the real world, let's talk about professional reputation, being called on bullshit, and being fired. Okay, I can't talk about group work anymore without, oh, still wanting to kill members of previous groups for being so unbelievably selfish. Christmas, this year, you will be enjoyed.

The word 'authority' is extremely important in these situations. This whole situation is about authority and responsibility. A student does not have the right qualifications or the right distance or the right standing in the hierarchy of education to make these decisions. And everyone in the room will know it: Do we honestly think that student's voice is going to outweigh a professor's? A long time administrator's? It will not. Now, that's the real world for you. What are we imagining: sending in some charismatic twenty something to defend our rights to personality? Seriously.

What could be more powerful in this situation is a statement prepared by students that details what exactly they are looking for in fellow students. Bright, dynamic personalities, whose heads filled with practical know how and dedication to studies. But, also, someone who will make a trustworthy and informed information professional. How do you tell all of that from paper? You can't. And that is the real issue here. Not who does the choosing, but how we apply. Why not have an interview process? Why not submit something a little bit more creative? Why don't we get to show ourselves a little bit more?

Isn't this the root of the problem? That we want the people in power to know that there is more to us than transcripts or job experience. If we want change, we need it where it matters. Not a superficial band aid that causes more controversy than any one program needs.

Hallowe'en, Part Deux

These pictures, of course, should have been added a week ago. However, it never seemed to work out that I had my memory card and a lap top at the same time. now though, sitting at my parents place, doing laundry and waiting for them to get back from their walk, i not only have the card, access to a computer, but, and get this, i actually have the time to write a little something. i know, its crazy shocking.

see, now, when I first saw Heather in her costume, I got it totally wrong. Well, I mean, I got the fifties prim and proper housewife part right, but see, I thought she cut off her own hand and just proceeded to bake it, because, well, baking is what good wives do. But, in truth, it was a slightly more sinister. See, she had cut off someone else's hand and baked it. This is obviously a much better story. She won for the best costume, which, of course, is excellent.

This is robin being entirely unimpressed with her boyfriend, kirk, who's resting a glass on her head. She's dressed as Dorothy, which is entirely appropriate for her cute little self. Of course, she had to compete with another Dorothy, who was called, rather appropriately "Whore-thy" for the evening due to the shortness of the skirt and the prescence of garters. At a library party. I am not sure I will ever understand the notion of "sexy" hallowe'en costumes. The whole point is to dress up as something other than one's self, and well, if you dress up as a whore, I think it might be because, and this is a shocker, you're a whore. Just because its Hallowe'en, you aren't tricking anyone else into thinking anything other, so, really, you little slutty girls, you're just a treat and no trick at all. Which is just so terribly boring. I think that's why it bugs me so much. You have this opprotunity to do something funny or clever or different...and so many people just march to the beat of average.

This is, of course, Jarrod as a "space banker." The pictures of this costume really turn out excellently, even if no one else knew what he was. As far as costumes go, his was certainly unique. Thank heavens. If Jarrod had pulled "sexy space banker" I am not really sure what I would have done.

This is me as a zombie prom queen. I'm clearly attaching two people, who, instead of looking frightening, just look like they are humouring. Do they not understand that I'm a zombie? That I suck the life out of people and spit them out just wandering shells of their previous selves? That's some scary shit and they just aren't feeling it.

Hallowe'en was actually a pretty good time this year. As always, I left the costumes till the last minute. And I spent more money than I had expected to. (So if you see me with a plastic cup and coffee from home, you now know why.) But, we got two nights out of our costumes, which seems to make it a better bargain. I do not have any pictures from the second night, at The Sean Ward Show, because, although I brought my camera, I forgot the memory card. Story of my life.

okay, i am considering something. that something is more school. are you shocked? you know, seeing as how i'm twenty five and haven't really not been in school yet. but, for a while there, i really thought that this year was it.

but, well, i've decided that i want to be a "digital services librarian." this means that i'll be taking on the responsibility of maintaining and developing the technologies that my library uses, everything from webpages to learning sessions to implementing new services and products. I want to be "that guy" who knows what she's doing. and to get there, to be self-sufficient, i am simply going to need more skills. its like i'm a skills junkie: i got my first taste with cataloguing, then with SQL, now...its all about the web. so, this is what i am thinking: Humber College, six months, $5900, Web Development Certificate.

Is this ridiculous? Can't I learn the skills on my own? and the answer, sadly, is no, i cannot. sure, i can do the basics, case in point, the header on this blog. but, i don't really 'get it.' and i want to. i'd like to. and i think that might be my real motivation. i would like to do it. it would make me feel pleased and proud of myself.

plus, i have all of these dreams of freelancing and pulling in some extra moola. and learning how to use a mac. for the real reasons: graphic design.

i am weighing ups and downs, worrying about job prospects, wondering what it is that i actually want to do with that whole thing called life.

pretty much, i have no idea.

You know what I hate about hallowe’en? The costumes. Yep, I hate them. Not because I think its silly or because I’m a adult, but, because, the good ones are so damn expensive. I mean, last year, jarrod and I went out as hicks. I was pregnant with a magnum of wine, he wore a beater and a flip flops with socks. We both wore mullet wigs. And talked in southern drawl. (it got worse as the night went on) but the wigs were each twenty bucks. For wigs! And the rest of the costume we made ourselves. And by made, I mean, were shocked when we discovered how easily our wardrobes suited being trailer trash. And this was our “cheap” costume. Originally, we had ideas about renting costumes from Malabar. Which is just stupid. If you could even get in the door, who would want to pay a hundred bucks for one night of costume renting?

I blame this on my new thrifty side. I will admit it. This summer was pretty rough. Financially. In every other way, it was great. But, having no money coming in, and worse, no savings to fall back on (education shmeducation), really meant that I was pinching the proverbial pennies. And suddenly, all the Larsh went out of me and I was filled with the McIntosh spirit. Its like I am possessed. I can feel myself being miserly. I’ll debate on whether to buy a really great book. In the past, I’d have bought the good book, the book beside it, and another, just to make sure I had my tastes covered. Its certainly a shock, let me tell you.

And this year, come hallowe’en, it’s the same all over again. I love the though of dressing up and I hate the thought of doing it. I remember during my undergrad, dressing up as a baby and my girlfriends killing themselves laughing at me because I hadn’t spent a cent on the costume. I mean, what’s the point? I am going to get drunk and fall down. I might as well be doing it in old pyjamas rather than some slutty dress that I want my deposit back on.

So, tonight, when it comes to dressing up, I guarantee I will be one of these things: a gypsy, a hippie, an old lady, or a baby. I hate all of these costumes equally. Maybe that’s why I am driven to the drink.

And damn it, I know I can’t compete with a tyranawhorus sex.

oh, and i just thought the shark was funny.

i am always surprised to find where hate shows up. see, i moved into this apartment thinking i would hate lee's palace. i don't hate lee's palace. the other night, robin was in here, and after about an hour of chatting she looked at me and was like, "hey, when did the music start?" neither of us had noticed. but, it turns out, the people that i hate are the tenants upstairs. they are jocks. they are loud. they play music at all hours of the day. and night. the other day, while reading in my room, i heard one guy go, "yeah, dude, let's watch some porn. what channel is it again?" and then three or four other male voices all yelled, "39!" glad to know there is some self love going on upstairs cause i sure ain't hearing the ladies very often.

i finally feel like i have my room organized. i moved the closet bar waaaay up high (i can barely hang things on it) and i can get right into my closet. this has served to open up the room immeasurably. I was not inclinded to give my sliding-over-the-bed table, and, in order to still be able to, oh, i don't know, walk around the room, i had to move the dresser. we're not living in a big space here, jarrod and i, but it sure is feeling a lot bigger now.

i've had a very excitign couple of days. yesterday, at my practicum, i made a shocking discovery. the almanac that i was cataloguing was not actually missing pages. no, indeed, the pages were complete, they were just, get this, mis-numbered. and me, being the sleuth that i am, figured out that the pagination was just fine if you counted, but not if you actually looked at the number printers. fortunately, i had another copy with which to compare and to prove my shocking results.

.

i am being completely serious. this totally made my day.

see, i feel like there might be people out there who might question my dedication to this profession or my natural inclination. even though i detest school, and lectures, and papers, and discussion, i do truly love this profession. i just need days like yesterday every once in a while to remember it.

.

lest you think i've totally changed stripes, i did spend the day chatting on gmail with my favourite online compatriots, kristen and tasha, who, of course kept me abreast of the fact that lindsay lohan is corrupting rumer willis (is anyone else surprised that she isn't more good lookin'?) and that some paramour's are just not worth the effort. or the email.

.

right now, this second, i am taking a brief pause from my advocacy report. or powerpoint. i'm working with a partner from western, which has actually turned out pretty well despite my worries, and its her turn to look things over. when she sends it back, i have to do a audio recording.

.

i am afraid i am going say either "god mother fucking damn this course is terrible" or "like*" (in a valley girl type tone). these two fears are equal, because, well, i don't have control over my mouth when i say either of those things.

.

i will maintain that it was not my fault.

i know, i know, its been a while. and you've missed me terribly. i know. i promise to be better in the future. see, the great thing about this blog is that i can make promises like that. and then not keep them. with no repercussions, except that i feel mildly bad.

so, these past few weeks have been busy. busy to the point where i feel like if one more thing falls on my plate then i will just start crying. its been a stressful time for the whole family, with dad's illness, with moving, with everything...there just don't seem to be enough hours in the day. this is how i know that i am all grown up, because i say things like, "there just aren't enough hours in a day." i also offer this example of grown upness. yesterday, a friend mentionned that she got stuck in a corridor without a pass card and could not get out. all the doors required security clearance, which she did not have. i, of course, was shocked and said, "well, that's such a safety hazard!" yes, that is what i said. i went on about how unsafe it was to have a situation wherein people get stuck. fortunately, someone else came through the door. with a pass. otherwise maybe there'd be a party in there by now. (hey! party...maybe i am young still!)

i have managed to hurt my thumbs. one of the guys at work roped (and by roped i mean, mentionned, and i jumped at the chance) into playing intermural co-ed volleyball. its a total blast. its not too serious, but serious enough that you are excited when you win or when you make a good play. just my level. it also feels good to get out and do something physical, something other than just solo running. which actually i should be doing as well. i've pulled out of the race, but annetta is running in my spot. i think i might still tell people i am running so that they'll be uber impressed with my time. i am still going to go out and cheer for her! go annetta go! i don't know what she's been eating for breakfast to have all her motivation, but i give her a lot of credit for it. we're playing ultimate frisbee intramurally as well, and i am going to bust out my carleton ultimate show for intimidation. but then they'll expect some skill from me.

the new place is alright. actually, its great. there was a while there when i could not even write about it. i was upset with the moving process, i felt so bad for robin (who kinda got swept up in the tide of alli-planning, which is never a good place to be), i was adjusting to the noise (thank you lee's palace), there were so many other things to just "get done." but now, it feels like home. both robin and jarrod have put so much time and effort into our place that, although it is not perfect, it is the best home. i have never seen jarrod so much in his element, and that is pretty priceless to me. especially since i plan on dragging him across the country next year, wherever my employment takes me. thank you tasha for making me think way too much about that!

also, that jacket that i invested in at lululemon. totally worth it. i've been caught riding my bike in the rain no less than five times since i bought it.

its here. today, it came. i've been waiting all week for the packages to complete jarrod's birthday present, but, unfortunately (i am smiling inside because i'm a terrible person), it was my little present to myself that came first. and by present, i mean, classic switcheroo. dad wanted to be able to listen to some music to pass the time, and since the new ipods were only available online and he'd have to wait, so, i gave him mine. now, i'm sticking my bazillions of gigs back onto my itunes. please don't ask me why i have to do this. oh, okay, since you begged. i moved my folders around. and of course, itunes can't keep up, so i have to add everything again. and its taking a long long time.

we've booked movers for this weekend. i have to admit, the thought of moving all of this stuff, again, keeps me up at night. i wasn't sure how to get it done, i wasn't sure who i could impose on to help me, it just...stressed me out. and frankly, i have enough to worry about without worrying about moving. so, i booked movers. seriously. oh, we're still doing a lot of grunt work on sunday, moving boxes) but we're leaving the beds and the book shelves and the couches for the men. yes, i said it. the men. who have man strength. for lifting. and i will watch them, with a coffee, and think to myself about how this is the best money that i have ever possibly spent. especially since it is being split four ways.

censoring myself

bowing to friendly pressure, i've removed my address from my resume. see, both my mother and my aunt has previously pointed this out to me. i, stubborn wench that i am, shot back that, well, you could also find me in the phone book. after a fellow blogger commented that i was just tempting fate (actually that's completely putting words in his mouth but i think the message remains the same), i've removed the more personal of the personal information on this blog.

it brings up though issues of false familiarity for me. this blog is read almost exclusively by my friends and family and i suppose this makes me feel very safe. i completely forget the anonymity that the web provides, and really, the number of lurkers that love the blogosphere. i suppose its just about playing safe. i would hate it if something bad came out of this.

on an up note, both of my classes finished early today, i got my first choice for my practicum (at the library in the archives of ontario), and i even treated myself to some french fries and a hot dog for dinner. oh sure, the running ain't happening, but, with jarrod's new shift, canada's wonderland (does anyone want to go? there's discount tickets at pharma plus! come!) this saturday, and other things looking up, i feel pretty okay about perhaps backing out. if i did, it would only serve to give me even more motivation to run one in the spring. so, we'll see.

grease monkey

there are a few things that i have been meaning to blog about. but, you know, life is busy and my down time, which was work, is now busy as bees, and i just don't have the time to blog. time like i would like to. time to talk about things such as how i have decided that shampoo and i must end our twenty five year relationship. see, it started when i got back from scotland. somehow, most of the shampoo was gone. and you know how it is, you squeeze out the last couple days a wee bit longer than you should. and then, you make the dramatic announcement that maybe, well, maybe you don't need shampoo at all.

and then your cousin mentions that you are far from the first person to do such a thing. indeed, read this for background. basically, its a few different women who have experimented with not washing their hair. i guess the basic idea is that we strip our hair's natural oils and then replace them with conditioner. so, if you remove the shampoo, your hair should regulate itself. the below pictures were taken about three weeks in (its been over four now) and i use them to demonstrate that yes, my hair did increase in curliness. it also increased in greasiness, but, fortunately that seems to be subsiding. for a while there, i could barely stand to touch my roots and i admit that on a few occasions i wore headscarves. but, there is something about this dirty experiment that appealed to a very weird part of me: the same part that was appealed when jeanetta challenged me, while camping, to go without brushing my teeth. i dunno. i guess i just ain't a lady.

i don't think it looks dirty...i think it actually looks a lot less frizzy. even thicker. for the record, i hate my hair. i think its mousy, its going grey but not enough to be attractive, and, well, its terribly thin. i used to be paranoid that i was balding, but, it doesn't seem to be getting any worse. so, basically, i was willing to try just about anything to make it look prettier. i am actually quite happy with it. my dirty little secret, is, of course, that somewhere along the line i've stopped brushing it too. oops.

le weekend de le "party"

its monday and i feel more tired than i usually do on fridays. i think i need a weekend to recover from my weekend.

first of all, kristen visited. now, i was expecting a fun time. of course i was. but i was not expecting such a busy fun time! on friday, i worked till eight, and then met tasha, annetta, alex, lorien and dave. you can judge by the number of highlighted names that it was a bit of a mini-blogging conference. there was a whole lot of "arpha.org!" and "princess awesome" (which refere to, of course, our blogging personas. it was nerdy. and it was hella fun. the night just kept on getting better. a great pub night, where jarrod joined us, and, dare i say it, i think he actually had a really fun time out with us. kristen has a gift for drawing out the quiet folk. i remember looking in the mirror, after a pint or two, i'll admit, thinking what a great time i was having because all the people i love were around, in great moods, and at the start of a weekend.

on saturday, the girls and i spent the day at the clothing sale, held at the automotive building at exhibition place. of course, i thought it was at the convention centre, so i dragged kristen there and left a message for stephanie and eddy saying that was where it was. there are times, truly, when i get my lines crossed. however, we made up for lost time (some of us more than others!) and each scored, i do believe, deals of the year. for instance, i got:

now, i have been looking for a vintage-y beaded purse for years. my mom has this beautiful one that was her grandmother's. actually, she let me use it once, for mike and ciara's wedding. and i was so worried about it that i could barely use it. and then i even worried about it while it was just sitting up in my hotel room. sometimes i take responsibility very seriously.

i also got:

a pink hat and a gold beaded necklace. now, i am not sure how it is that i ended up with two beaded and gold things, but i love love love them.

of course, this post could not end without mention of kristen and her mink. her exact words, as she shrugged into the beast were, breathlessly, "oh, tell me how much this is and give me a fantastic price because i am just dying to buy it!" and the lady gave her a great price and boy did she buy it. as she ran to the ATM, i just smiled, looked the lady in the eye and said, "you should see her with men!" i think we made her day. but, its only fair, because she made ours.

i think she's trying to show canadian spirit, with the flag and all. i am not sure robin knows what to make of her, but truly, that is a very significant part of her charm. thank you for visiting kristen, and for being hilarious and fun, and of course, for inviting me to the big city. which i will one day take her up on. and by one day, i mean very soon.

**and we did pee in a field, but only because we really really had to and it was a long long walk.

dear drivers in toronto,

i realize that your morning commute is stressful. its busy and you're late and you're trying to drink your coffee. there's one way streets and pedestrians, not to mention other drivers. but, in all the business of the morning, please take the time to remember you are sharing the road: with cyclists. i know, i know, you have all the power. you're big, you're motorized, and you have the protection of your windows. my little bell is nothing compared to your horn. i know all of this, but still, i am asking for a little condsideration.

for instance, on select roads, there are bike paths. these bike paths are just like your roads: but for bikes. can you imagine if you were driving down the street and your road was blocked? how angry and irate would you be? but, this happens all the time. a bike path is not a convienient place to pull over while you drop your grandmother off. it is not the place to pick up a fare if you are a cab driver. and fedex, damn it, get smaller trucks or get off toronto streets. what all of you drivers seem to forget is that you are going to win in a fight. you'll cream us. this is why we need that little bit of space. after all, we're commuting too. and we're also late. and we've left an extra ten minutes to grab a coffee but that isn't going to happen if i have to keep dodging cars.

also, when turning corners: please remember to leave room for a bike to pass you. don't hug the curb so tightly that we have to jump the curb and scare pedestrians. just think a head a little, check your rear view. cyclists are a part of the culture in downtown toronto. whether you like us or not, you should be grateful that we aren't also driving cars and making your commute even longer and more stressful. if you'd like an experiment, try riding your bike yourself one day and experience the fear and stress of riding alongside unpredicatable drivers.

i understand that we have made different commuting choices and that, indeed, we feel quite a bit of animosity towards the other. however, i promise to obey all the traffic laws i can, if you simply try to grant us a little space. hopefully, you can stop complaining about how ridiculous cyclists can be and i'll stop bitching about how oblivious drivers are. it'll be perfect.

thank you for your time!

alli

ps to all of you pedestrians who keep putting garbage in my bike basket: you'll get your letter soon. you mofos. its still littering! if i see you, i will sterilize you. yes, that is a threat. i think you're pathetic lazy scum. (maybe i don't need a whole letter.)

dude, hold the coffee

it is a standard rule of libraries, i do believe, worldwide, that you are not allowed to either eat or drink within spilling or crumb distance of the materials. of course, this rule is entirely not binding of library staff. this is because we like to flaunt our obvious superiority. not only do we know the methodolgy behind dewey, we also get to drink our coffee and eat our muffins.

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the cafeteria is located on a different floor than the helpdesk. so, some traveling occurs. i always, always (well, most of the time) obey the rule to use the stairs rather than the escalator. its a rule, i don't know, librarians aren't always understandable. i headed for the stairs, while my walking partner headed the opposite way around the median in the middle of the hallway. i remarked to him, in a normal speaking voice, that i was surprised he wasn't told to take the stairs, as, usually, i was told to. he laughed and we proceeded down the stairs.

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chatting, we walked towards our place of work. about twenty feet away, in front of us, i heard a girl go "where do you think you are going?" (and in a rather snide and snippy voice.) i didn't answer, in fact, i looked behind me to see if she was talking to someone else. when i realized she was indeed looking at us, i looked at jamal, thinking that she must know her. when i finally realized that she was talking to us and that neither of us knew her, i kinda gave her that shrug, and went, "uh, over there." (pointing to the help desk) she replied, "you're not allowed to have drinks in here, so..." and i looked at her and went, "we work here." she said, "well, i heard you two plotting about sneaking drinks down here." and so i said, "look, we were work here. i was joking because they always tell us to take the stairs." bitch. it was one of those times where i could tell that she was looking at us, wishing she could say something the whole way down the escalator (which she could take since she didn't have a coffee, which was probably the whole problem), and promising herself that if she did see us, she'd damn well say something because the sanctity of robart's library rests on her shoulders.

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the best part: helping with registration today, she registered as a first year student. i think she even blushed when she saw me. you know, when she saw who i was. an upper year student. with friends. so intimidating. i might laugh about it with her later, but for now, i think a simple "excuse me, but drinks aren't allowed in the library" would have sufficed. clearly, i'm still bitter that i got yelled at.

when counting sheep fails

i am a chronic sleeper. if i have an hour or two off, chances are, you can find me napping. sometimes i'll give the pretense of reading, but mostly, its sleeping that i'm up to. so, its very unusual to find me not sleeping at two in the morning. i am never stuck by insomnia. i am asleep, usually, by the time my head hits the pillow. its rather disconcerting that right now, i am still awake. coming back from the cottage, i expected to be asleep, oh, about four hours ago. but, i'm not.

i realize that there are a lot of things going on right now. work, school, moving, illness, at the best of times september means business, and now, for me, this year, its even more than busy. i feel like there are nine million things for me to do and i want to do everything so well and yet i just feel tired all of the time (which makes it even worse that i am not asleep right now). i am not used to stress. i am usually such a good planner that well, i don't plan for any stress time.

we came home a day early from the cottage and i am beginning to regret that decision. i love the cottage. but the weather was terrible. and i am sore all over from pathetic attempts to wakeboard. jeff makes it look easy peasy, but for this old girl, it cause nothing but incredibly sore back muscles. fortunately, i beat jeff where it counts: on the scrabble board. and he did boost my spirits by saying that i was a great wakeboard boat driver (take that uncle john!). but all i really wanted was to get up on that damn board. maybe next summer. i say next summer rather than next time, because, well, because the motor on our boat caught on fire today. yep, it was smoking. literally. we had to have two old rugged fishermen to tow us back to our dock. i say rugged because at least three times, the older one said, "in my forty three years on this lake..." and i figure that anyone who has been in one place for forty three years, and if that one place is a lake, that qualifies you are rugged. the man was so informed that when my dad warned him of a dangerous rock near our dock, he uttered his catch phrase. apparently, he knows intimately all the rocks on our rather large lake. i wasn't going to insult him though, he saved us a whole heck of a lot of paddling. and for that, i am grateful.

the visit was seriously spiced up by the quinn family. i don't know what it is, but as we get older, our family because exponentially funnier. i don't think i have laughed so hard at some many different things in a long time. i wasn't even drinking. much. i know they made mom's birthday extra special, and in times like these, well, making good memories seems even more important. that was extremely sentimental, but well, like i said, i don't do well with insomnia and so i think i should be able to multiply mine. you know, for a normal person this is nothing, but for me, its like i've been awake for weeks. i am simply not in my right mind. i just love everyone.