Before I amaze you all with my incredibly deep and earth-shattering resolutions for 2011, let’s check in on how I did with last year’s:

- get more sleep (8 hours-ish a night) – I think I did a little bit better, but there is definitely still room for improvement here
- never sleep in past 10 am (so, to respect previous resolution, never go to bed past 2 am) – slight improvement, but overall kinda FAIL
- take more photos – I did pretty good on this one
- watch every single Dr Who episode before 2011 – complete and utter FAIL. I’m deferring this one to 2011.
- try and waste less time online – definite improvement, but I could still a bit better at it
- craft more (this will probably be a resolution every year for the rest of my life) – counting all the shit I did for the wedding, I definitely crafted more. I’m still keeping it on the 2011 list though.
- take more weekend trips – success. A lot of those trips were to weddings, but that still counts, right?
- build better/stronger relationships with new Fredericton friends (making friends is so awkward, guys) – still a work in progress, but we definitely succeeded on this one in 2010.

And that I’ve shown you all that I generally fail miserably at resolutions, here are 2011′s:

- wear more lipstick
- support local business as much as I can (I’ve given up my iRewards membership at Chapters in favour of shopping at Westminster Books already – this is a big one for me!)
- stop using a paper agenda and use my smart phone as an agenda (for a gadget nerd, I really like my paper agenda for some stupid reason)
- watch every single Dr Who episode before 2012
- learn at least 5 songs on my ukulele before the end of the year
- craft more
- start a YouTube cover band with my husband. Make at least 3 videos.
- be more regular with my exercise routine

I’m feeling optimistic, dudes!

Picture from frangipani photograph on Flickr.

I enjoy a lot of really simple things in life. Russian nesting dolls are one of them. There is just something about uncovering a super tiny doll only to find out that it just keeps on going – there’s and even tinier one inside of it! – that brings incredible joy to my heart. I hope to one day have a very extensive Matryoshka collection. *hint hint to my husband*

The basis for this post came to me on Sunday night, at my friend Kim‘s beautiful wedding reception. I was hanging around with my friends Émilie and Mathieu, taking a little break from the dance floor, when Mathieu proceeded to tell us that he just can’t dance like he used to. He used to groove and move and he claims that now he’s pulling all sorts of “old people dance moves”. All three of us were on the dance floor for one of the first songs of the evening (“Old Time Rock and Roll”?), and Mathieu just gave up after that one and sat out the rest of the evening. He claims that he was dancing and looking around at the old folks next to us and realized that his smooth moves were eerily similar to those of our dance floor companions. “I just don’t have it anymore”, he said.

So for Mathieu, getting old is dancing around to Bob Seger swaying from left to right and clapping your hands to the beat of the music.

That got me thinking about the things that make me feel old. I confided in Émilie and Mathieu that with every year that has passed and passes, my dislike of/general apathy towards Fleetwood Mac has turned and continues to turn into appreciation and love. Fleetwood Mac, dudes, I love them.

There are many, many other things that make me feel old in my day-to-day life. They will surely be the topics of many a future blog post.

So what makes you feel old?

Well we’re still going – just not right away. Chris doesn’t get much paid vacation at his job and he wasn’t able to get any leave without pay in August, which really blows. So instead we’ve set our sights on sunny California. Neither of us have ever been and we’re getting pretty excited to go!

So far we’re flying into L.A. and bumming around there for a few days, then we’re heading to a $3 million beach house that we’ve rented for a week in Solana Beach for some California-style beach bumming and not thinking about weddings…. ever again! And then, well who knows… we’re thinking of sort of winging the rest of it. I most definitely want to catch some shows while I’m there, so we’ll see what comes up closer to the date. We’re there from August 3rd to the 16th and then it’s back to non-wedding-planning reality in Fredericton, which should be nice!

As for the Mediterranean Europe vacation, it’s still a go, we’re just thinking of going in sometime in the off-season next year. That way it’ll be easier for Chris to get leave without pay from his job and there’ll be less tourists in our way.

And now I leave you with what is possibly my favourite California-related song, California on my Mind by Wild Light. Lyrics not necessarily safe for work.

I’m in Ottawa for the week for work. I don’t miss the city that much on a day-to-day basis when I’m in Fredericton, but when I’m here, I miss all the little silly things that I loved so much about living here. Hartman’s, Bridgehead, sketchos on the bus, UOttawa campus, awesome restaurants, Centretown doggies…

I especially miss all the amazing friends I made while living here. I’m on a wonderfully strict schedule of lunch with this person, supper with so-and-so, and late night coffee with this other person. It’s amazing. I’m exhausted but loving every minute of it.

And then this weekend I’m spending 100% of my time with my main lady Val. We haven’t seen each other ever since I moved away in December of 2008. I’m incredibly excited and fully anticipating not wanting to leave come Sunday.

So yeah… things I love? Ottawa.

Behold, in no particular order:

- get more sleep (8 hours-ish a night)

- never sleep in past 10 am (so, to respect previous resolution, never go to bed past 2 am)

- take more photos (getting my brand new DSLR today! What what!)

- watch every single Dr Who episode before 2011

- try and waste less time online

- craft more (this will probably be a resolution every year for the rest of my life)

- take more weekend trips

- build better/stronger relationships with new Fredericton friends (making friends is so awkward, guys)

Well I think that’s a tall enough order for one year. What are some of your resolutions?

Happy twenty ten to all! xox

It’s probably been one of the most emotional and eventful years of my life to date. A good year, but also tough in some spots.

Good in that we bought a house, both have found meaningful employment that we enjoy, got to spend lots of time with our families, are really enjoying living in Fredericton, have met lots of lovely nice people and have made some new friends. The year’s mostly just been tough because we missed our friends from Ottawa a lot, and still do today.

Whenever I sit back and think of all the changes I experienced in the last year, I kind of just want to have a stiff drink. Here’s to hopefully never having such a crazy year again! Cheers!

Now, for some showing off:

Clockwise from top left:

Pretty purple cowl for my friend Val (that I was supposed to knit her last Xmas… sorry Val!)  -  Black slouchy hat for my friend and co-op. student extraordinaire Kristie  -  Super warm brown mittens for myself  -  Fingerless mitts for my friend Sinéad who lives in Ireland  -  Brown slouchy hat for myself  -  Bee hat for Katelyn’s daughter Ella’s Halloween costume

So – yeah – machine, huh? It’s like the biggest compulsion ever. Maybe it’s somehow related to the colder weather, but all I can think about all day long at work is coming home and curling up on the couch with the pug to knit.

Knit knit knit!

Tomorrow is Remembrance Day. Armistice. I’ll be perfectly honest in saying that while I’ve always been thankful to veterans and our military, I’ve never paid too much attention to the holiday. Sure, I always wear a poppy and observe the two minutes of silence at 11, but that’s been about it.

Last year whilst still living in Ottawa, I attended the national Remembrance Day ceremony for the first time. It was such a powerful and emotional ceremony that since then Remembrance Day has more meaning to me.

I won’t pretend that I’ve been touched by the war like others have been. I won’t pretend that I’m pro-military. I won’t pretend that I understand what past and current soldiers’ families feel on Remembrance Day. But tomorrow, I will be just as thankful as every other Canadian for all that our veterans have done for our country.

Thanks.

Driving under an overpass on the highway on my way home from work this evening in pretty heavy rain. I love hearing the rhythm of the rain and seeing my windshield wipers chase it away, and then, all of a sudden, being under an overpass and there is a delayed break in that rhythm and the wipers are streaking across the windshield uselessly because of the obstruction overhead. It’s like time stops for an instant.

I hate driving in the rain, but I love those tiny silent moments.