Abby's Big Day

It's hard to believe but my niece Abby turned 10 this July. Double digits! I remember waiting for her arrival...she was my first niece. In anticipation, I got my aunt Peggy to teach me how to quilt and made my very first (and only) quilt. (I was pretty proud of it)

Last weekend Abby came over to celebrate her birthday. It was raining and the perfect day to spend indoors. So, we headed to Clay Cafe in Stratford. It is a cute little spot that you can paint your own pottery. After browsing the selection, Abby picked a turtle trinket box. The shell lifted off to reveal a little box to keep small treasures in. I decided to do a couple of small plates.



I have to say I was surprised by how involved Abby was in painting the turtle! She took great care to pick just the right colours, outlining different spots and giving multiple coats. Before we knew it, the afternoon had disappeared and we were getting hungry. We were able to leave our projects on the table and come back to them later.



We wandered off to find some dinner. We decided on the Elizabethan Restaurant where we shared a chocolate shake, and each got a grilled cheese with fries. Then we headed back to finish off our projects. As I watched Abigail carefully painting her turtle (red toe nails and all) I realized how grown up she has become. I also see a lot of myself in Abby and I like that. John has told me before that he has often mixed up and called her Janice as she reminds him of me. Cute.

After a sleep over, we spent the afternoon with Auntie Jo-Anne, Uncle Nick and Jesse & Liam. We did the hokey pokey, chicken dance and just about every other "action song" I have in my repertoire. On the way home we stopped to take Grammie a coffee at work and finally home to Mom & Kaelyn. (the boys were on their fishing trip)

I always enjoy time spent with my nieces & nephews. Each and every one is so adorable in their own unique way.

Double Big Day Out!

What is cuter than a four year old? I ask you this? Currently I have two 4 year olds in my life...well for another month anyway. Jesse turned four in July and Kaelyn will turn five in September. Last week I spent the day with both of them. What fun!



I was lucky enough to win 4 tickets to see "Walking With The Dinosaurs" at the JLC. So, I took the 2 munchkins and my sister Jo-Anne for back up. In the afternoon, my brother dropped Kaelyn off at my place. This tiny little blond haired girl arrived dragging a Barbie suitcase almost as big as she is. She was also carrying a Strawberry Shortcake doll that was half her size. (she travels light! ha ha) We soon set off to pick Jesse up for some time at the park.


What fun we had! The park we went to had lots of really fun equipment to explore. However, it was a pretty hot day, so pretty soon we were off to the splash pad. Jesse was a little cautious when discovering where the sprays and squirts were coming from. Not Kaelyn...she would stand directly under a stream of water! Urging Jesse to join her was a lost cause.



We stayed until both were shivering and then piled back into the car. A quick stop at home to get changed and then we went for our special dinner. Anyone in the London area should consider going to Once Upon a Teacup. It was so great! There is a closet full of costumes to try on and a fancy menu to choose from. Both Kaelyn & Jesse chose grilled cheese which was served in "sticks" and a pot of ketchup to dip in. Also a bowl of popcorn. To drink: apple juice - served in teacups and a teapot for refills! Dessert was a chocolate chip cookie served with a pot of icing and sprinkles with a popsicle stick to "decorate" with. (note: if the kids were a bit older and could handle having dessert sitting right in front of them, the meal would've been served on a 2 tier platter!)


Then we were off to see the dinosaurs. It was very exciting! They seemed real and both the kids enjoyed it immensely! What a great day.

Daily Photo Project (July)

My Peanut

Four years ago, I was in the middle of my biggest project at work. Not only were we changing the name, logo and look of the station (from The New PL to A Channel) we were also launching a new graphic system at the same time. I had to go to Toronto for some training for a few days. It was a steep learning curve as we had a short time to have everything completely re-designed and up & running. Lots of long hours and over time, of course over the holiday weekend.

At the height of all this, my sister called me (at work) to tell me she was in labour and they were heading to the hospital. I had been anticipating this moment for a long time and didn't want to miss out on the excitement, but it really wasn't a good time for me!! After I confirmed she wasn't kidding, I somehow weasled my way out of the building until the next day.

I hit the hospital waiting room with Mom & Connie for a L-O-N-G night of waiting. In fact...I think that is the first post I made on this blog. After many hours of labour, Jesse Harding Koiter was born. I can't believe the little peanut is four years old today!!

Living in the same city, I've been able to spend lots of time with Jesse and watch him grow into the incredible kid that he is. Very curious, fearless, huge vocabulary, and LOVES Lightning McQueen. When he was learning to talk, he called me Ya-Ya. These days he is sure to point out the TV tower when out & about and calls it "Auntie Janice's tower". So cute.

Sweet Spot

Originally I sat down to write a blog post about the hassles of filing an insurance claim and all the little things that added up over the past two weeks. However, I think I've complained enough about that whole fiasco. So, instead, I'd like to comment on music.

You probably know if you're reading this blog that I am a big fan of music. Most times I'm listening and not creating it, but I've been known to belt out a few tunes. :) But, in the past few weeks, I've particularly noticed how some music can have such a comforting and calming effect.

Music surrounds us every day ...filling our ears in the grocery store, on an elevator, even while you're sitting in the dentist's chair. But, this music is not the type I'm talking about. Some music is great and you enjoy listening to it, but not particularly heart-warming. I'm talking about that feeling you get when you can sing every word to the song and it takes you back to a time or place with fond memories.

A few weeks ago I popped in a Paul McCartney DVD to have on while I was doing some house work. It had been a rough couple of weeks while my sister Jo-Anne was in the hospital for colon cancer surgery. As the familiar songs filled the air, I realized how much I was enjoying the music. It really made me happy listening to it. A few days after that, a Don McLean song (Vincent) came on the radio on my way home from work. Again, I had that enjoying-it-to-the-fullest feeling. Certain artists usually stir up this emotion in me. Johnny Cash, The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel...and usually any old country song that I remember singing along with as a kid with my dad.

What about you? Do you have an artist or a song that hits your sweet spot?

Post Script

I forgot to mention that the other driver was issued a breathalyzer test at the scene. He blew in the "warning" zone and had his license suspended for 3 days. He was also charged with careless driving. When I got the police report, it said he was going 70km/h and I was going zero. So, as you can imagine, quite a jolt. I never did see him or talk to him, but my one question for him is..."how do you not see a red light AND a YELLOW beetle stopped at that red light???"

The End of the Beetle Era

The impact of being rear-ended goes far beyond the shattering glass and mangled metal. It takes over a little space in your mind and is like a movie on a loop. This can get emotionally exhausting.

On Saturday night, Jason & I were on our way home from my friend Sue's house. We were stopped at a red light when a pick up truck slammed into the back of us. But, there was no warning! No headlights in my mirror, no tires squealing, horn blaring... I had no idea what happened. In fact, I thought some type of explosion had gone off behind us. The first thing I remember was the exploding sound and my face planted in the steering wheel. The next thing I remember, the car was down the street on the opposing side and Jason was telling me to stop the car. I still had no idea what was happening. Neither of us had ever been in an accident before and were in shock.

I remember a girl appearing at the door, insisting I get out before the air bag went off. Jason was hesitant to move me in case I had injuries, but she seemed to think it might go off any time and it would injure me more. So, I was helped out of the car and onto the sidewalk. It was then that I realized we were hit by something...someone and that I had blood all over me. The "airbag" girl gave me her jacket to stop the bleeding. She was convinced that I had broken my nose. I think she was in an accident herself...she seemed to be quite helpful.

Very soon the ambulance, police & fire arrived. During this time I was still confused as to what had happened. Jason confirmed that the truck that hit us was still there, but back at the intersection, so I never did see the driver or the truck. In fact, I didn't see the damage to my car until the next day. (probably a good thing) Jason & I were both strapped to boards and loaded into 2 ambulances.

It was such a surreal experience going in the ambulance. I always assumed it would be a smooth trip, but it was really jostly and seemed to take forever. It's really strange when you can't see anything peripherally...just the ceiling. Especially once we got to the hospital. We were wheeled into a curtained corner and waited for a while. (seemed like a long time, but maybe it wasn't) When you're the one that is in the crisis...it is a totally different experience. I was wondering where all the people were that were going to help me??? I could just hear voices of people that were putting in a regular night at work, talking about vacation, kids, etc. We were just a number.

We were finally checked out by a doctor. Jason had a few stitches in his head and I had a broken nose and a black eye. I was a little surprised when the nurse gave me a package of warm wet wipes and said I could clean myself up. I knew we weren't at the spa, but come on? She couldn't even clean the blood off my face for me? I had no mirror and no idea what I looked like. It was strange. In the process of treating me, my shirt was cut off. When it was time to leave...I realized I had no shirt to wear home!! I ended up zipping my hoodie up to the top. Ironically, our cabbie for the ride home had seen the accident! Strange.



So, the last few days have been filled with phone calls, faxes, appointments, etc. My car, unfortunately, is a goner. I have to admit I got a little teary-eyed when I saw it on Sunday. I hadn't seen the crunched-in side on Saturday night. It was strange to see my little bug all twisted up like that. The truly annoying thing is that I just had it detailed - inside & out - ONE WEEK before the crash. It was a strange contrast to see the freshly shampooed seats & floor mats covered in glass and a little of my blood!

I will finish this post for now as I have so many things still to take care of. Thanks to all of you for your encouraging notes & phone calls.

Mr. Tony Bennett

I count myself lucky to have seen Tony Bennett not once, but twice in my life! On Sunday, Jason & I set out for Toronto to see the man, the legend, Tony.

I was keen on getting his autograph so we wandered around the Canon Theatre around 3:30, hoping to catch him on his way in to sound check. Several years of stalking celebrities at the Toronto Film Festival seems to have paid off. [Let me clarify that I use the term "stalking" very lightly...we don't actually stalk celebrities. We wait patiently at pre-determined locations where celebrities will be appearing.]

After checking out both entrances to the Canon, we decided to check down a dark & scary alleyway filled with stinking garbage left from the striking city workers. Ok, maybe it wasn't dark & scary but the garbage was real! We saw a sign that said "Stage Door" ...which I took as a good sign! We also saw 3 others hovering about with LP's and cameras in hand.



Less than 10 minutes later...the door opened and Tony walked out! I have to admit I was a little flaberghasted at first, but quickly composed myself and asked Mr. Bennett for an autograph. I had one page left in my autograph book for Tony to sign. At first, he ALMOST signed on the back of Jennifer Aniston's autograph. This wouldn't have been good since sharpies have some bleedthrough on the page. However, I didn't want to TELL Tony Bennett where to sign!! He quickly caught on and actually thumbed through my book! I was ecstatic to get an autograph. Jason, however, wasn't as lucky. We were both so enthralled that we didn't manage to snap any photos until the SUV had rolled away.

We returned for the concert and were treated to such an amazing performance. At 82 he still belts it out with such passion & finesse. I also think it's so adorable when he does his little dance moves during the musical interludes. During Shadow of Your Smile...he asked them to kill all the mics and sang "unplugged". Amazing!

After the show, we returned to the stage door to see if Jason could get an autograph. This time there were about 25 people waiting for Tony. When he came out, he was just great and signed everything that people had for him. This time, I was more together and was able to snap a few photos. I also was able to form words into sentences and told him I really enjoyed the show and he did an amazing job. (or something to that effect)

We left, 2 happy campers!

Daily Photo Project (June)

15 Minutes of Fame...Frame by Frame

Since I recently posted my appearance on the Paul McCartney DVD, I thought I would include my brief stint on the longest running game show on TV...The Price Is Right! I didn't get called on down, but the guy in front of me did, so I got some good face time.

I've decided to get my 15 minutes of fame...frame by frame!

Coolest Grammie on the Block

I have such a cool Grammie. Yesterday I went for a visit and was enthralled with stories from the past. She grew up in England, during the war. That's when she met my Grandad...a Canadian soldier. At just 19 years old, she got married and set off for a new life in a new country. She arrived, expecting a baby (my mom) but not expecting what was ahead of her. They moved to Sarnia and eventually Corunna and had all kinds of adventures while raising 6 kids in a small house that Grandad built himself. Adventures that included raising 3 pigs in the back yard, using an outhouse (her mother would have been horrified!) and learning all the new terminology these Canadians were using.

Grammie still lives in that house. Yesterday, it was so nice, we sat outside on the back stoop. To our left was the garage...where they lived while Grandad was building the house. In that tiny, 4 room building they spent some of their happiest days with 3 little ones. When #4 was on the way, Grammie said she wasn't coming home with another baby until they could move into the house. And they did!

I love listening to Grammie's stories, but I also love that she listens to me. She's not quick to judge and is always a soft shoulder to lean on. I see a lot of me in her and I like that.

Yesterday my cousin Josh came over and we all hung out. We ordered pizza for dinner and had lots of laughs. We were each sent home with a baggie of cookies and of course a big hug.

Do you have special memories with one of your grandparents? What are some of your favourite moments?

Hangin' With McCartney

I'd like to direct you to my October 2005 blog entry (here). This is an excellent foundation for the story I'm about to share.

Several years ago, Karla-Ann and I were heading to Toronto to see Sir Paul McCartney. We decided to go a little early and try to catch a glimpse and if we were extremely lucky...an autograph! I was completely thrilled when the car zoomed past with the former mop top waving out the window! The concert was amazing as well.

So...fast forward a few years. My sister Connie gave me a Paul McCartney DVD for my birthday. Upon further inspection, I realized that it is from the Space Between US tour. Cool. I'm not sure why, but it sat on my shelf until last week. I got it out and watched the concert. I loved it. I re-ignited the Beatles flame.

I took the DVD to Jason's house...I wanted to share my excitement. He didn't think he was a big fan of McCartney, but after watching the concert, was checking to see when his next concert would be! A few nights later we decided to watch the DVD extras. I had casually mentioned I "could" be in the extras as I had seen a camera drive past while we waited for Paul. But, I wasn't expecting much.

As the camera panned down a line of fans, I said "that kinda looks like Toronto". Jason didn't think so, but I needed a second look. I rewound that scene and was sure that was the group of people I had stood for hours with. As I said "if this is Toronto...I should be at the end of this line..." I hit the pause button and would you believe the video froze on a shot of me & Karla-Ann? I totally freaked! I'm sure Jason still has bruises on his leg from me hitting him and saying "I'M IN A PAUL McCARTNEY DVD!!!" he he he. Blink and you'll miss it, but I've helped you out by grabbing a frame :D

How about you? Have you had a brush with fame you'd care to share?

Update on Jo-Anne

So, a week has passed since my sister Jo-Anne went in for her surgery. When the surgeon came out, he said everything went according to plan...no surprises. That was a relief. I went to see her the next day and she seemed to be doing well. (better than I was expecting) She sat up and had some lunch...macaroni & cheese and peas. It was the first "real" food she had eaten in quite some time. Her incisions (5) were small and looked like they were healing.

Over the next few days her status changed on an almost hourly basis. My mom spent most days with her. As a registered nurse, she has a 6th sense about what she needs almost before she needs it! As the days passed, and neither gas nor "the other" did not...Jo-Anne was getting more and more uncomfortable. An NG tube was inserted through her nose to relieve some of the pressure and she had an Xray, CT scan and eventually had a second surgery last night.

The doctor decided there must be a problem that after one week he wasn't seeing any "movement". So, after his regularly scheduled surgeries yesterday, he found the problem. When the lower bowel was attached to the small bowel there was a twist in the lower bowel. This was causing a blockage, so they "untwisted" the problem.

So, now we are back to square one for recovery. Hopefully we will see continual improvements over the next few days.

Friends

In the past week I have had the opportunity to catch up with some old friends. Some over the phone, some over coffee, some laying in the grass - soaking up the sun. We've covered weighty issues like divorce and job loss but also laughed until our sides hurt. I have some amazing friends.

But, the problem is: as you go through life, you never stop accumulating friends. Since we have the same number of hours in a day and days in a week, it makes it increasingly difficult to keep in touch with all of them. As much as you want to, sometimes weeks and even months can go by. But, with true friendships that time doesn't matter. You pick up where you left off, fill each other in and enjoy each other's company.

I feel so lucky to have crossed paths with so many amazing people. People I have worked with, gone to school with, met on trips halfway around the world. Thanks for being a part of my life!!

My Update

I'm following up my post about the fabric I bought to make cushions for the couch. I finally got the sewing machine out of the closet last week. For some reason I was all ready to do some sewing when I got home from work last Monday. (yes, at midnight!)

I got the machine out and changed the thread, being careful to remember all the spots it had to go through. I spun a bobbin of the colour I needed and put the bobbin in as well. Then I did a test on a scrap piece of fabric. I was perplexed when there were no stitches. I re-threaded and re-threaded the machine multiple times. I even googled my problem (but found nothing useful) Since my machine is an antique...I don't have a manual for it. By this point, it was 1:30am. I determined there was nothing I could do and headed to bed.

The next day, my mum & Grammie were coming for a visit. I suggested Mum take a look at my machine and see what I was doing wrong. After a brief 2 minutes, Mum discovered I was threading the needle from left to right rather than right to left. I couldn't believe something so simple could cause such headaches!! Thanks Mum!!

Anyway, I've been cutting, pinning and stitching away and here are a few photos of my project!

I Love My Mechanic!

My friend Sue says, that as you make your way through life, it is important to find yourself a good hair stylist and a good mechanic. If you can put complete trust in these two people...you are set.

I found my stylist about 5 years ago. The mechanic was a bit trickier. Since my brother is a Class A Mechanic at a Ford dealership, I originally took my Ford Tempo to him for repairs. Then I bought a VW. I faithfully took it to the dealership for oil changes and repairs while it was under warranty. However, I always felt like I was being taken for a ride...and not in my car. Their customer service was less than ideal and their prices were outrageous.

A little place called "Autobahn Motors" caught my eye while driving past. It had a classic Beetle in its showroom, so it was worth checking out :) What I discovered inside was a small operation with excellent service and decent prices. I have come to put complete trust in my mechanic Chris.

Even though he knows I have no idea how a car works, he always takes the time to show me the problem, the parts, etc. and explain what is wrong. If he thinks I can drive it for a while before it needs to be fixed, he'll tell me that. If he thinks it is unsafe for me to drive it, he'll give me a loaner until it is repaired.

Yesterday I was in the area and decided to pop in and get him to check a noise that my car had been making for a few days. Even though I didn't have an appointment, he took about 20 minutes to take it for a drive and find out what was making the noise. He assured me it is nothing to worry about and sent me on my way without charging me a cent.

I think this kind of customer service is awesome. So, if you're in the London area and drive a VW, I suggest taking your car to Chris to be seviced.

Sew - A Needle Pulling Thread

More than a year after I took my beginner sewing class, I thought I'd put my skills to use. I purchased a pattern and some fabric today!

Last year I was feeling inspired and signed up at a local sewing shop to learn how to sew. I took my antique sewing machine in for a tune up, purchased some fabric, a pattern and other supplies, and showed up on a Wednesday morning. My final product was a pair of pyjama pants. I should really take a photo and post it here. They turned out pretty good for my first project since Home-Ec class.

However, after my first class, my roommate bought a house and set the wheels in motion for looking for a new place and moving. The sewing machine got packed away and forgotten about.

Recently I've been feeling like my living room needs a spruce up and decided to try my hand at some throw cushions and curtains. I was feeling particularly ambitious today and ventured in to Fabricland. I picked out 2 types of fabric and a pattern. (Sewing Patterns for Dummies - pillows) I'd like to get started right away, but I have to start my shift at work now :( I will post my progress here, so stay tuned!

Adulting

3 down...1 to go. Of the 4 of us, I'm the only one left to have my colonoscopy. Unfortunately, I have to wait until June. (I'm kidding about the unfortunately part) Connie went last Friday and John went today. Both are in the clear. (so to speak) I talked to my brother this morning as he was preparing to go in for his appointment. He said the prep wasn't too bad but was not looking forward to the procedure. I asked for him to let me know how it went as I'm a little nervous about that too.

In the meantime, I got a phone call from my dentist...turns out I need a root canal. What? Are you kidding me? One horrific procedure at a time, please!

Anyway...John emailed me tonight to say that it was a relief to have it done. And...to quote "To be honest Janice I would rather go through that than some experiences at the dentist. It was a breeze and nothing to fret over." I thought it was ironic that he brought up the dentist :)

In the meantime...Jo-Anne is planning on having her surgery sometime next week. She has created a blog to update family and friends on progress. If you want to check it out, here is the link.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jkoiter

Cancer

Cancer. We hear the word pretty much every day:
There is a new cancer study.
It is ______ cancer awareness month.
Please donate to cancer research.

But, when it touches you personally, the word becomes so much more than just a word. It is a fear. Your worst fears realized. Last Thursday, my sister Jo-Anne was diagnosed with colon cancer. Hearing the words just did not seem real. I had no words to come out of my mouth. Even the next morning, I woke up wondering if it was just a dream.

This is my sister. She's a wife. A mom. A daughter. An aunt. A friend. This is not supposed to happen to her.

I've learned in the past few days that colon cancer is very rare in someone Jo-Anne's age. Also, because she is so young, her immediate family will need to be screened as well. That means colonoscopies for myself and my siblings.

On Friday (the day after her diagnosis) she went to have some blood work done and a chest XRAY. While she was getting the XRAY, she asked the technician if she knew how long the wait would be for her CAT scan and if she should just wait for a phone call. She had been told the day before that she would be put on an urgent list and it should be within 3 weeks. (Three weeks is a long time to wait when you're waiting to see if cancer has spread or is contained!) When the technician asked her circumstances, she was very sympathetic and said she would check on it. Amazingly, she came back to tell Jo-Anne there had been a cancellation on Monday morning at 9am...would she like that appointment? Wow!

So, Monday morning, she went for the CAT scan. We weren't really sure how long it would take to get any results, but I got a phone call from Jo-Anne that night. The doctor had reviewed her results and wanted to let her know that upon first look, it appears the cancer is contained. That is great news!

We are now just waiting for her to have her surgical consultation and book the surgery. In the meantime, my sister Connie has her colonoscopy booked for Friday and my doctor was putting in a referral for me today. (not sure if my brother has started the wheels in motion yet!) Thank you so much for your prayers and kind words. They have meant so much. I know it is a tough road ahead, but for now, I feel a bit of relief.

Straight Shooter!

During a trip home for Easter, my brother John (who is trying really hard to look like Gizzly Adams these days) brought his newest "toy". To John, a toy is something involved in the world of an Outdoorsman. ie: hunting, fishing, etc. So, when Jason & I arrived at Mom & Dad's I saw John, Dad & Josh prowling around down by the barn. I wasn't sure what they were up to, but it seemed typical enough.

After dinner, John asked if I'd like to come and see his new/old muzzle loader. I wasn't exactly sure what a muzzle loader was (actually...I still don't. some kind of really old gun) I wasn't really interested, but I thought I would give John a kick and see what this was all about. I borrowed a couple of layers from Mom as it was pretty cold and headed down to the barn.

John & Josh (his protege) were giving a demonstration on loading the gun. There were lots of steps and seemed pretty labour-intensive. I'm not really sure the point, other than just nostalgia I guess. The real excitement was when John asked if I'd like to shoot it. Ahhh, ya!






I took the gun and John helped me set up to take my shot. I was prepared for it to come back into my shoulder (from all my previous experience shooting a gun!) but it didn't really do that. It was LOUD though. After the shot was fired, Josh ran off to check the target (with a poor little groundhog on it) He came running back saying "you've got better aim than Dad!" Ha ha...I was shocked! Steve took a turn and missed the target and then Jason shot. He hit the target but wasn't quite as close as I was.





On the way home, we stopped in to see John's new puppies. They are pretty adorable, I'm sure you will agree!

Mac Trouble

After one week of being computerless, I'm happy to have my Macbook back in my posession and fully functional. Last Sunday, I opened i-tunes and it said there was an update available. I had said "later" to this message for about 2 weeks and finally decided to do the update. I let it run while Jason & I played crokinole. When it was done, it said to restart the computer. I hit restart and headed over to my friend Kim's house.

Imagine my horror when I came home and saw a blue screen. (I'm not calling it the "blue screen of death" because I thought that was a PC thing, but...I'm not sure anymore!)I tried restarting it again but I got the same thing. The next morning I went over to Jason's to google the problem. I tried various key combinations while doing the start up, but I kept getting the same result. Eek. I was totally freaking out. Mostly because all of the photos I've taken since getting my laptop would be gone...no back up. (lesson learned) Later that day, I lessened the freak out when I realized that my ipod had all my photos loaded on it. So, if worse came to worse, I still had those.

I contacted my friend Chris who is the most Mac-passionate guy I know. He's helped me out on numerous occasions and really came through for me this time. I still don't know what the problem was, but I have my computer back and better than ever. He loaded Leopard on it for me. (for all you PC users, Leopard is the most recent MAC operating system)

Furry Happy Monsters

While checking out Entertainment Weekly tonight, I stumbled across 25 Classic Sesame Street Visits. Being a life-long fan of the show, which incidentally is celebrating 40 years on the air, I had to check it out. (if you're interested http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20217995_6,00.html) Most of the photos had clips attached and they were so hilarious. Sesame Street has a way of making children's programming entertaining for adults and this video by REM had me laughing out loud as I sat at my desk in the newsroom :) Hope you enjoy it too!

Daily Photo Project (March)

Celebrating Another Year

Well, another year older, another year...wiser? Not sure about that one, but last week was the anniversary of my birth. Yes, it was 32 years ago that I was born. For some reason, birthdays are still a big deal to me. So, spreading out the celebrations for over a week was A-OK with me!

The weekend before, I did a little road trip to Lambton County :D I went to visit my Aunt Peggy, she's just so adorable. Then I went on to Petrolia. John & Karen and the kids came over to the Berrys and we had pizza and birthday cake! It was so yummy...Connie made a homemade chocolate/lemon layer cake. Unfortunately, the battery in my camera was dead so I didn't get any photos. I was so disappointed.

After supper with the family, I ventured on to Grammie's house. She was looking forward to having some company and had the tea on when I got there. My cousin Josh came after work and decided to stay over too. So, we had an impromptu slumber party. Grammie (who is quite the night hawk) and I stayed up talking until 1:30am! She's a great listener and I always like hearing her stories from the past. We had to put the clocks ahead that night, so the next morning, we were all still in bed when the phone rang at 11am!!

I spent the rest of the afternoon with Karla Ann in Sarnia. We played Scrabble (a rare occurance...I won!) and watched some old videos from highschool. Oh, the memories!





The next weekend Jason & I went to see Art Garfunkel in Toronto. (I think I'll save the details for another post) We also went to the Warhol exhibit at the Waterloo Children's Museum. What a great place! The London Children's Museum pales in comparison. PLUS they had original Warhol pieces on display and hands-on silk screening. It was a fun afternoon.





On my actual birthday, Karla Ann came to London and brought a picnic! It was such great weather that we sat in Victoria Park in shirt sleeves to enjoy it. Later on, I went to Jo-Anne & Nick's for a homemade dinner and then finished off the day at Starbucks with Sue.

Thanks to all my friends and family for making me feel so loved!

Left Behind

There is a movie out there, starring Kirk Cameron, called "Left Behind". The plot focuses on a guy in a post-apocalyptic world. It then shows all the hardships he endures as one of the ones left behind. This week, I'm feeling a connection this character. After all the decisions at work about who will be staying and leaving, I will be losing some of my favourite co-workers and I will be left in an empty newsroom. :(



DUANE DEINUM (LOOSE CANNON)I've always told Duane he is like my brother. Not that he is like my brother John, but he is like a brother to me. He's helped dig my car out of a snowbank, move a bed into my upper-level apartment, take a beetle for a test drive, even take a mouse out of mouse trap for me! I have a lot of respect for Duane as a person and have loved working with him. I value his opinion on things in all areas of life and we've had some really good talks. Duane loves race cars (I'm not sure if it's Nascar or stock car or what) and when I went to Monte Carlo right before the Grand Prix, he was flipping out! (well, as much as Duane can flip) ha ha...I remember how excited I was the day before I left for that trip and Duane had to put up with my spazziness that day! He was also cooperative when I was trying to get "action" shots on my new camera. Duane and his wife Debby have been such great friends and I look forward to lots more good times.


MURRAY BARNETT
For the past 10 years, Murray has been my go-to guy. We first met during my internship in Creative Services. He took me out on a shoot and then we got to go for lunch at East Side Mario's. We just clicked after discovering we both grew up on a farm, our moms are nurses, and he just seemed like part of the family. Murray has been there for me when my car wouldn't start - he'd give me a boost, when I needed something hung on the wall - he'd bring his tool belt, when I bought a standard car and didn't know how to drive it - he came with me to pick it up and then spent the afternoon teaching me how to shift. We've discussed politics, religion, relationships, Oprah, country music, musicals, family, careers, history, and pretty much everything in between. He's always got the dish and when he doesn't, he'll just make up something that sounds good :) There is no other like Murray (Beefy Forearms) Barnett and I will miss him tremendously.
TREVOR DIXON (AKA: JOEY)
Trevor started at the station shortly after I did. He was a long-haired hippy type that got along with everybody. Soon after, we started working the early morning shift together. If there's anything that bonds people together, it's starting your day at an ungodly hour! We would go to matinee movies (who else was available to see a movie in the afternoon?) and out for breakfast with the morning crew. I even convinced Trevor to come to our Board Game Nights. I think he was surprised that he actually had fun! ha ha. I set him up with his first email account and we made the trek to Cedar Point & The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with Randy & Janice Meyer. I remember making a pact with Trevor a LONG time ago that I would watch Star Wars if he would watch The Sound of Music. As I recall, I held up my end of the bargain, but he never did watch Maria & The Captain. Trevor, I have 3 words for you: ONION RINGS...GASP!!



BOB SMITH
To me, Bob Smith is a real-live renaissance man. Not only is he a fantastic news anchor, but also a great line-up producer, farm-markets reporter and knows a plethora of information on anything you can think of. We share a love of The Beatles and both times I saw Paul McCartney, Bob was at the same concert. We had some great times working together on the noon news. One of my favourite shows was the Christmas Carol call-in. It seemed like everything went crazy with cameos of Sarah putting on her scarf, John Lees walking into the camera and John Wilson interrupting Bob & Peter while they were on the air! It was hilarious. I also remember Bob sticking up for me & my creativity when my tickle trunk was on air and a caller was complaining that there wasn't enough colour on it! Ha ha...Bob was quick to point out that it was FULL of colour! I shall miss you Hog-Boy, from Miss Piggy :)

JIM CRICHTON
Jim started anchoring the Windsor newscast from our London studio. It was during this time that I got the pleasure of working with him. I've never met such a hard-core newsie!! Jim takes his job very seriously but we also talked a lot about the 60's, cars and music (especially The Beatles) He dubbed me an "old soul" and I think there's something to that.



CHRIS PARR
Chris & I share a passion for music and have had lots of discussions about the best way to get an autograph :) I remember a LONG time ago, we were actually compiling a music trivia game! (Chris, maybe we should market that!) Chris has helped me out on numerous projects, shared his expertise and has been a great guy to work with.

Buzz Words

WORDS I'M TIRED OF HEARING THIS WEEK:

layoff
bumping
package
carriage-fee
CRTC
cut
slash
severence
cancelled
grave
revenue
broken model

Layoffs

In case you have heard or seen something in the media today, I thought I should fill you in on what's happening at work. First off, my job is safe for now but as you can imagine, a lot of my friends have lost their jobs and that is very sad.

Last week we were told that CTV was not applying to renew the licence on 2 of the 3 stations run out of our building. This signaled troubled times ahead. However, for 6 days, we didn't know how this would affect us. Today, we found out.

Effective today, our morning show was cancelled. Anyone who works directly for the morning show is laid off immediately. This includes my friend Chris who has worked here for about 20 years and one of my favourite co-workers Bob Smith...30 years! In addition to that, when Windsor & Wingham go off the air in August, more will be affected. This will include my friends Trevor, Duane & Murray. In total, 48 people were affected today.

Daily Photo Project (February)

Here is the February edition of the 2009 Daily Photo Project.

Daily Photo Project (January)

My project for 2009 is to take a daily photograph of myself for an entire year. This idea transpired and morphed from a couple of different sources. A few months ago, I heard a feature on CBC radio's "spark". They introduced us to a man that took a daily polaroid photograph for 18 years. http://photooftheday.hughcrawford.com/ They were not necessarily photos of himself, but there was one for each day and there were no "do-overs". Years after he passed away, a friend of his scanned them all and posted them online. I was intrigued by this.

Part of my idea also came from reading AJ Jacobs book The Year of Living Biblically. http://www.ajjacobs.com/books/yolb In the book, he tries to follow every rule in the Bible, literally. Part of this includes him not trimming his facial hair, so he had a photo layout showing the change in his beard each month. This inspired me.

So, on New Years Eve, I decided I would use the built-in camera in my computer to take a daily photograph of myself. I would do no do-overs and I wouldn't get upset if I missed a day because, let's face it...that's going to be a lot of photos! Missing a day here and there won't hurt :D

So, here is the month of January!

Clouds in my Coffee

I started drinking coffee early. While visiting my aunt Peggy, I would join the adults for coffee as early as I can remember. (I'm guessing about 10 or 11 years old) At that time, I just put whatever my parents put in their coffee, so for most of my life, I've taken my coffee with 2 creams and 2 sugars. It makes it easy at Tim Horton's ...double double. It has a nice ring to it :D

Recently, Jason & I were discussing coffee and how it sounds really cool when you say "I'll have a coffee...black." I really didn't think I'd enjoy black coffee, but decided I was going to start weaning myself down to black.

I started by ordering "regular" - 1 cream, 1 sugar. But, I found it wasn't creamy enough. However, I figured I could do without the sugar. So, I've been taking my coffee with double cream and NO sugar. I think eventually I will reduce the cream, but for now, that is my progress.