Hickeys

I really don't understand the purpose of hickeys. I mean, I realize the biology behind how they arise (yes... prolonged sucking of the skin will draw blood to the surface and cause redness and even bruising), but how on earth do they *really* happen? I've done the science experiment myself (and with the help of others) and it's pretty damn hard to get a hickey to the state of being a very large and obtrusive "love mark". It takes a LOT of work and focussed efforts for the sucking to have this dramatic end result.

Although I suppose it *is* possible for such creations to occur if one were extremely "in the moment", I can't help but wonder if hickies are actually instead the result of some weird branding ritual intended to make some sort of statement.

While working at the Running Room on Sunday, I had a university-aged couple come to try on shoes. After spending nearly an hour helping them to find the perfect shoe, I couldn't help but notice some very eye-catching red and purple welts on the guy's and girl's necks respectively. I used to think that only teenagers got hickeys and it was basically their silly way of rebelling and showing others (including their parents) that they had some steamy make-out session. Given the age of my recent customers though, my theory is now weakened.

I dunno... maybe I just haven't lived rebelliously enough in my day... But then again, maybe I just prefer to avoid the whole "diseased" look.

The Blues

Yeah... I got 'em. This sucks.

If anyone has a good remedy, please click here. Random stories are welcome. Anything that might bring a smile to my face.

Dryer lint

Got this forward from my grandma and thought I'd share it with the rest of the world. Probably the majority of my readers don't even own a dryer, but I figure it's one of those "useless pieces of knowledge" that might actually be useful to know for later on in life...

I had a wonderful morning, the heating unit went out of my dryer! Why does everything seem to fall apart this time of year!???

The guy that fixes things went in to the dryer and pulled out the lint filter. It was clean. We always clean the lint from the filter afterevery load of clothes. He told us that he wanted to show something. He took the filter over to the sink and ran hot water over it. Now, this thing is like a mesh - I'm sure you know what your dryer's lint filter looks like - WELL......the hot water just laid on top of the mesh!!! It didn't go through it at all!!! He told us that dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh and that's what burns out the heating unit. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. He said the best way to keep your dryer working for a very long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months. He said that makes the life of the dryer at least twice as long! How about that???!!!! Learn something new everyday!

I certainly didn't know dryer sheets would do that. So, thought I'd share!

Note: I went to dryer and tested my screen by running water on it. The water collected a little but ran though the screen. I dried it off and was ready to put it back in the dryer since the water ran through it but, I thought was the heck it won't hurt to wash it while I had it out. Warm soap water and a nylon brush and I had it done in 30 seconds. I then ran the water over the screen and what a difference the water just gushed through it with no puddling at all and this time I was running thre water at a faster rate. That repairman knew what he was talking about.

NOTE FROM ME.....Had to go try this myself....by golly, it was true! Water puddled and hardly went thru my 'clean' screen.....filled the sinkwith water/soap and brush brush brush and voila! Water straight thru.....think maybe those dryer sheets were invented by the Maytag guys just to finally give them some work?

Not sure who all those people were that did the experiment themselves, but it sounds like it's unanimous. This trick actually works! Happy laundering... :)

Mystery of the week

Does anyone recognize any of the following names?

Paul Robson
Jane Haque
Walter Jarsky
Jacque Beauvais
Jason Cook
Joe Balant
Judy Haddad
Cheryl Ibbotson
David Shanoff
Debbie Fleming
Doris Chen
Felix del Aguila
Gordon mahaffy
Helen Nolan
Jason Francoeur
Julie & Ronni Bates
Camilla Gryski
Casey Meng
Qiu Wang
Christos
Narcissist Design Co. & The Perfect T
Daniel Neysmith
David Room
David Keeble

My reason for asking: I received a very random email forward from a "Paul Robson" last night with a silly picture of a penguin standing on top of on a panda bear. My first reaction was that it was a virus, but I was pretty sure they couldn't be transmitted via jpgs. Totally puzzled by why my name was on his list of recipients, I googled him and found out that he's an economics graduate from UW. After responding to his email and politely asking him how on earth he might know me, he responded with "Sorry Heather, It's a mystery. I deleted you from my contact list."

Anyone who knows me will know that this is gonna drive me nuts until I figure out the connection (as I am certain there is one somehow, probably less than the cliche "6 degrees"). Anyone with any leads, please show me the light! This mystery CAN be solved!! :)

Funny Story

Oh my gosh! I almost forgot to post about this one!...

So the other day after my usual Monday evening run I was waiting patiently at a stop light (like all responsible drivers should) and drifting off in my own little dreamworld. When all of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a little red Plymouth Colt turn the corner in front of me. This car caught my attention because it was the same one that an ex-boyfriend of mine used to drive. I thought... "no way... that can't be him... he can't still be in this city"... But sure enough, I caught a glimpse of the driver as it passed, and it was indeed, my "psycho ex" (the title comes from a very long story that you'll have to ask me about in person some day if you have any desire to learn more about it). I laughed aloud thinking about the strange encounter, and when the light turned gree, continued along my merry way wondering if I would ever run into him again.

Well, not more than a month later (last week), I was on my way to my first shift at the Running Room. Feeling totally ravenous from having not eaten much all day, I decided to stop at a gas station to pick up a quick snack on my way to work. And since I was coming directly from my brother's place, I happened to select a gas station I wouldn't normally pass by. As I entered the store I quickly scanned for the chip stand, grabbed a bag of Doritos (yummmy!) and headed to the cash. It was at that moment that I noticed the cashier making an overly obvious attempt to avoid eye contact with me. I looked at him and quickly realized, it was the psycho ex! I said hello and called him by his name and he almost tried to pretend like he didn't know me. But I continued the conversation and asked him what was new and all he could say was "umm.... I'm.... here...?" I asked him how his school was progressing or if he was done yet and he said something about finishing up this year. Since I was in a hurry, I wasn't able to talk longer, but I couldn't help but laugh as I walked out the door. For someone who was soooo confident and strong headed and egotistical while we were dating, I couldn't believe what I saw. What a weird encounter...

Am I a sick person if the only emotion this whole situation stirs up is laughter?

Catching up...

A huge congratulations to Trina on the completion of her first half marathon! Trina completed the Burlington Chilly Half a couple of weeks ago and finished with a time just over 2 hours. Way to go girl!! Congratulations also goes out to Mike (my Ericsson co-worker/roommate buddy from 3B) and Brenda on their recent engagement. I'm so happy for you two!

Career news: I am now officially a part-time employee of the Running Room in Waterloo. I applied a couple months back (before picking up my tutoring students), but last week I got called for an interview. Next thing I knew, I was on the staff list! It's been fun so far. 2 shifts under my belt and I'm schedule for an opening shift on my own next Sunday. Crazy stuff!

Marathon news: I was all set to brag about my exciting flight news (round trip tickets to Vancouver for $282 taxes included) when, much to my disappointment, I got the sad news of Jetsgo's closure (less than 2 weeks after I booked my flight with them). I was so pissed, but called my credit card company the morning I found out and filed my "grievence report". Supposedly I should be getting my money back the day after my flight is scheduled to depart. Thanks to my big brother Mark for feeling sorry for his poor sister and donating his
Air Miles points to my cause. I still have to pay $140 in flight taxes, but that's definitely the best deal around these days!

Motivational news: Saturday evening I met up with a friend to go climbing at Sportsworld. It's been years since I have been climbing (last time was probably with Ming and others in 2B), and I had forgotten how scary it was until I was half-way up my first wall. After a while though, I eased into it and remembered how much you can rely on the "safety" in the rope. The best part of the night was conquering climb after climb with a little coaxing from below. Just when I was ready to give up from sheer exhaustion in my arms and grip, a little shout from below convinced me to keep on going. It's such a cool feeling when you overcome something that you didn't think you could ever finish! Man... am I ever sore today though!...

Finally... if someone is looking for something really stupid but cute to cheer them up, check this out: www.it.dev.duke.edu/tmp/I_Like_You.swf

Welcome...

Welcome to Luc and Amanda who I have recently added to my blog list. You should check out their sites. Amanda and Luc are both up to very different things right now at this point in their lives, but their goals and ambitions are still nonetheless interesting and inspiring...

Work Funnies

The joy of working at a small company means random emails to the entire mailing list, some of which are pretty hilarious. Here's two from this week:

Subject: Car licence APLS 236
Message: You've left your lights on. You're ok for a while, though, because you also left your engine running. Dave
Response (to the entire company): Thanks Dave. These remote starters are neat, but you have to watch how you put your keys away :-)

Subject: Wrong keys
Message: I am hoping that someone on this distribution list would know the whereabouts of my keys. I hung my keys up shortly after 1pm in the gym and when I returned at 1:45 to fob out of the gym.... I realized my keys were gone. If someone would like to swap their keys for mine... preferably the person who currently owns my set of keys, please reply to me. I would like to have them before I go home.... so that I can go home :-)
Thanks, Mark

Backwards Reality

I can not believe how backwards our country (and government) views the current sporting/olympic "crisis". After reading a story on CBC.ca yesterday, I was floored to learn how Canada plans to get out of our performance slump at the Olympics and boost our medal count at the 2010 games. They think that funnelling a hole pile of money down a specific channel that targets only the top athletes will miraculously lead to a specific number of Gold, Silver, and Bronze Canadian performances at the Vancouver games 4 and a half years from now.

I don't think so...! I think the problem goes so much deeper and is tied to our generally lazy and unfit Canadian culture. Look at the physical education program in our elementary schools and think about how much changes in that area could have bigger and "grander" effects. By targeting the Canadian poplulation as a whole when they are young and at their most influencial phase of life, instilling a passion for (and even just the habit of) physical activity and sports can have a trickle effect and result in a much larger Olympic candidate pool to choose from. Sure this may take a lot more work (revamping the curriculum, changing views, making people do stuff they just don't want to have to do) and extra money. But forecasting the medal results at say, the 2020 Olympics, and even the financial rewards on our public healthcare system could speak wonders for this theory.

This "band-aid" approach is true in so much of life. The scary part is that it is simply a fact. With the sonic speed that life runs at today and the resulting pressures we endure, we fail to take the time to examine problems at the root. Instead we do whatever we can to find *a* solution and we suffer longer-term as a result.

Best deal in town!

So I've managed to pick up a couple of tutoring students this term. Both girls happen to be taking the same course, Grade 10 Academic, which is super convenient for me. After my first couple of sessions, I've realized just how much I'm cut out for this. I love helping them with their math! It gives me a fun challenge to re-teach myself what they are learning each week, and then try to think (on the spot) of a different way to explain it to them so they can see it, and better understand it, from a different angle.

I've discovered that I am a total sucker and these people are getting WAY more than their money's worth. For a measley $25-$30 these students are getting one-on-one sessions, for 1.25 - 1.5 hours, in their own homes, with yours truly. Given that the going rate in this city is $40/hour (and usually a very strict hour), I think I'm a steal. I wonder if I will ever actually end one of my sessions "on time"? :)

Ummm....?

Latest measurement: down 2 more pounds. I am hovering over the double digits now...

My race in Vancouver

Oh yeah... As of this week I'm officially registered for my half marathon in Vancouver! I'm pumped! Time to get the gears going so I can be sure to beat my time from last year...

Along with the race, I plan to make a vacation of it and sight-see in both Vancouver and Seattle (and anywhere else close-by that's worth seeing). If anyone has ANY suggestions on what to see, I'd love to hear from you!

Random Stuff

- Ok... I really think I HAVE to see the movie "The Notebook". I have heard nothing but amazing things from people about that movie and how much it made them cry. Even just this morning I got an email from my father stating:

have you seen the "Notebook"? Ev Sprung came over Friday night for supper and we watched it after. It is a bit of a chick flick rated 0.75 boxes of kleenex.

I can't wait to see it! Although I am prone to crying in just about anything (even sad commercials like the Freedom 55 commercial where they show the parents thinking about their new baby daugther that they just brought home, and reflecting on her growing up over the years, and how precious this life investment is going to be for them....), I especially like a movie that makes me cry. There is something so satisfying about letting it ALL out and balling hysterically after a really touching movie. I know I've got my money's worth when I leave the theater with a soaking wet kleenex in hand and big red poofy eyes!

- The latest Suave shampoo commercial on TV is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen! There is some spin case "news reporter" giving the latest breaking news about this *fantastic* shampoo... and then it ends with her giving the other female news broadcaster some evil girlie glare. Huh? Is that supposed to make me want to buy that product?

- Owen Sound has hit the headlines for a drug bust last week. Police raided a restuarant called The Old Mill in Williamsford (outside of the city) Tuesday, and seized more than $600,000 worth of marijuana, including 800 plants in various stages of growth and 50 pounds of finished product. The operation was pretty sleek and it sounds as if they were actually using the Mill to generate power for its hydroponics operation. Way to go Owen Sound!

- Good luck to my favourite RIM aisle buddy Jeff Wong on his first day at work tomorrow. Welcome to the "real" world. No more slacking off and shaking responsibilities like you did on those co-op terms! ;)

- My parents are the craziest parents I know... This morning they woke up and decided to leave for Waterloo at 10:30 to come for a "visit" just to see my sister's engagement ring. They brought a casserole lunch and my other siblings came for a visit (I tell you... it's a one stop shop these days with all 4 of us living in the same city!). A few hours later, it was time to hit the road as they departed at 4:30 so they could be home by dark. I love my parents so much. I can not BELIEVE what they will do for their children!

Geeky lesson of the day

So after 5 years of an undergrad degree in math, I thought I had come across all the greek letters out there. Today I learned differently. Apparently there is a greek letter named "eta" -- not "beta" like the one I'm familiar with -- "eta". Go figure?!

Happy Engagement Laura and Mike!

As my MSN name clearly puts it: "holy crap! my sister is engaged!!"

Yep... that's right... Mike finally popped the question! It happened this weekend while in Ottawa for a Winterlude visit. Mike and Laura went out for a Saturday morning skate on the canal and with the sun shining and the cool air on their faces, Mike got down on one knee and asked for her hand in marriage.

I'm so excited for the two! My sister is FINALLY getting married :) Congratulations!!

Doing good things

After a long and timely process, I finally had an appointment at MDS labs yesterday to have some blood drawn to determine my bone marrow type. This was a long awaited apointment that was initiated well over a month ago. After learning about the death of my friend's mother to Leukemia, I decided that it was about time I made the effort to register myself. I fully admit that it sucks that it takes something like that to give us the extra nudge needed, but I suppose its better than not doing anything at all.

So now that my blood has been taken, I guess I just wait. They will probably determine my "type" and then put me on the "list". And as long as I notify Canadian Blood Services of any major address or phone number changes, they will contact me if there is ever a match. Statistics are actually quite high that I may never receive a phone call. But if/when a match DOES occur, I will be ready!

If anyone is intersted in learning more about getting on the Bone Marrow registry, I encourage you to enquire. You can visit the CBS website for detailed information on becoming a donor.

Interesting Facts:

1) Each year, hundreds of Canadians need bone marrow transplants to treat potentially life-threatening illnesses. Fewer than 30% of these patients will find a family member with compatible bone marrow to donate. For the rest, an unrelated donor is the only available source of bone marrow. Fewer than 30% of these patients will find a family member with compatible bone marrow to donate. For the rest, an unrelated donor is the only available source of bone marrow.

2) Because Canadian Blood Services complies with international standards established by the World Marrow Donor Association, they can also search more than eight million donors on over 50 registries in other countries. By agreeing to make their donor data available worldwide, registries have significantly increased the odds of being able to find a matching donor for any patient, anywhere in the world.

3) You’re free to decline to donate at any point in the process. And it goes without saying, your decision will remain entirely confidential. However, you should be aware that there’s a serious risk of death to the patient if you decide to withdraw after his or her radiation or chemotherapy treatment has begun in preparation for the transplant.

4) Bone marrow is removed from the large bones of your pelvis using a needle. You’ll be given an anesthetic (either general or spinal) to ensure that you experience no pain during the collection procedure. Most people need only a mild pain reliever after the procedure to alleviate discomfort. Much of what is collected is actually blood that is withdrawn along with the bone marrow. The total volume collected ranges from under 0.5 litres to as much as 1.5 litres, depending on your size and the size of the recipient. This contains about three to five per cent of your body’s bone marrow. Both the blood and the bone marrow are replenished by your body, in two to three weeks.

5) The initial test for donating bone marrow is actually really simple and unevasive - you simply donate 2 vials of blood. No bone marrow is extracted (the scary part) until a match is found (in which case the idea of saving someone's life will probably override any fear of the process).

Nausea = quick and easy diet plan

It's amazing how easy it is to loose weight when one is stricken by 2+ weeks of nausea. I think I've lost close to 8 pounds now and I'm wondering when it will stop. My newest strategy: eat as much as I can when I have an appetite since I don't know when the next wave of nausea will hit, nor how long it will last. Man... if this isn't a lesson in life, I don't know what is.

It's a thong thing

So I've decided that it's about time my sister was introduced to the "thong" and so I picked one up for her while I was out this weekend. Although originally a skeptic myself, I've come to appreciate the comfort and utitilty that this particular undergarment posseses. I mean, you can't beat haivng no underwear lines, and with the right fit, you have pure comfort with the added benefit of no wedgies -- the perfect package! What more could a woman ask for?! What kind of a sister would I be if I didn't share this type of love...? :)

Quote of the day...

Only worry about the chances you didn't take, not the ones that didn't work out.

The worst kind ever

I don't think I have ever felt pain like the pain I've felt the past few days...

Likewise, I don't think I have ever felt more ill in my life...

Someone, please tell me it will stop. This is the worst feeling ever... ever!

Love hurts.