Brrrrrrr...

The room I am currently living out of happens to be particularly cold in the winter. The cause: my room faces north, my walls are VERY thin and it is above the front hallway which is VERY poorly insulated as well. In fact, a scientific experiment performed last month found my room to be 15 degrees celcius over night while my floor measured in at a low of 11 degrees. And this test was performed BEFORE we hit our cold spell with highs of -25 overnight!

I have learned to adjust though! In addition to adding an extra blanket to my bed, I have started wearing to bed...

• Socks (which I NEVER do)
• Down-filled slippers
• Flannel bottomed pjs
• Long sleeved shirts
• and often times, a fleece hoodie

Oh yeah... and usually I wrap myself in my fleece blanket as a final method of trapping in the warmth.

The craziest part? I'm still not warm enough! For someone who normally falls asleep within 3 minutes of hitting the pillow and sleeping right through until my alarm wakes me in the morning, I've been waking up in the middle of the night still cold. Go figure?!

Ohhhh... the joys of living in a townhouse! I'm not complaining though... I still love my winters :)

Gay guy friend

I think I need a gay male friend in Waterloo. I would desperately love to take Salsa dance lessons that are offered at both UW and at the Flying Dog, but it appears that I have no one to do them with. I have tried recruiting some female friends, but it just isn't quite the same when Salsa dancing very much has "male" and "female" roles. As a result, it means someone has to play "male" or else we rotate amongst the crowd with the potential for meeting some extremely creepy men.

Maybe I could put an ad in the Imprint or the Penny saver? Think I'd find any takers? :)

I love my sunshine...

I can't believe how rapidly I am noticing the sun changes lately... Last Friday when I was driving home at 5:40pm, I noticed that the sky was actually glowing from a tiny portion of remaining daylight. This definitely caught my attention since I have come to expect the usual pitch black on my way home from work. Three days later, when I was driving home on Monday, I noticed that the glow was even brighter!

And it's not just changing on the afternoon/evening side of the clock... (yes... I know... what a novel concept!) This morning was the first that I noticed a change in my morning routine. Usually when I arrive at work around 8am, I enter the building (with most of the lights off) in nearly complete darkness. Today I couldn't help but notice my desk being illuminated by the sun making its way up and peeking through my window.

I'm so excited! While I love my winters with the cold and snow, I also love my sunshine and extra daylight. Woo hoo! Things are looking "brighter" from here on in... (well, at least until the cycle begins again).

Congratulations Andrew

Congrats to Andrew on the latest change and new direction in his life. I think this could be a very good thing... I say "screw McGill!" They don't know what they are missing out on...

What!? Winzip is charging now?

I can't believe it... I went to download Winzip last night cause my sister didn't have it on her computer, and when I went to download the program at www.winzip.com, I learned that you can now only get it as an "eval" copy that expires in a month...

Go figure!?... I thought that we would never have to pay for programs like that and all this wonderful software would stay free forever! Boo hisss!

Fatherly advice

I woke up this morning to the following email in my inbox that came from my father. I thought it was too cute not to share.

Hi Heather

I just came in from scraping the car (lots of ice) and I thought of a few things that you should keep in mind for winter driving:

1. Try to keep your gas tank filled especially in temperatures that are up and down like we have had the past day or so. The more air space that you have in a almost empty gas tank, the more chance for condensation to take place and that (the condensed water drops) can cause your gas line to freeze up. No gas to the motor - it will not start. This happened to me in Windsor once (long ago). If it happens, put a small bottle of gas line de-icer in the gas tank and let it sit for a while (hour or so). Actually some people add a small bottle of de-icer with each fill-up as a preventative measure in times of fluctuating temperatures.
2. Always make sure that your wiper blades are not frozen to the windshield. If they are frozen to the windshield and you turn the wipers on, it can damage the wiper motor and that can be expensive.
3. Same thing with power windows. If they will not go down because they are frozen, do not keep pushing the button, because that could damage the window motor and that is really expensive.
4. Power locks are great because if the key/lock mechanism freezes up so that you cannot get the key in you can always just use the remote. Sometimes I have to hit the remote unlock button a few times if it is really cold and the lock mechanism is stiff. Hope that this helps.

Love,Dad

Although I already knew about every single item he described, I think it's cute that he thinks he is offering some really important advice to his daughter with her first car. Thanks dad :)

The "list"

I have prepared the "final draft" of my New Year's resolutions. I realize I'm a few weeks overdue, but heck... I figure I've got a few more left to complete them.

1. Get more sleep (an extra 30-60 minutes per night)
2. Eat healthy and learn to cook better meals (ie. learn from Laura and Mike)
3. Try to develop a "6-pack" (like my big sis!)
4. Work more efficiently
5. Explore spirituality further

Pleasant Surprise

This past Friday night I was pleasantly awoken at 11pm to a knock on my bedroom door. Pleasantly, because after coming to and waking from my groggy state, I discoved Andrew standing in my doorway, roses in hand, on a surprise visit from Montreal. My sweetie had decided to come for the weekend in honour of our 4-year anniversary on Wednesday (January 12th). What a very nice surprise indeed. I can't believe it's been 4 years already…

On Sunday, we were both able to attend Andrea and Graham's wedding reception upon their return from taking their vows down in Antigua. The afternoon reception was really nice and flavoured with Andrea and Graham's own personal touches. We experienced their favourite Greek dishes from their favourite restaurant, Colussus. We also got to see a slide show of their beautiful pictures and received a special picture (hot off the press) and frame of us with the bride and groom. Congratulations to Andrea and Graham. I am so happy for the both of you!!! I wish you all the happiness (and more!) that marriage can bring…

Braless Again

Man... I did it again. You'd think I would learn my lesson... Thank goodness I happened to wear a clean sports bra this morning to the gym, so I at least had an alternative choice. It's amazing the "flattening" properties of a good sports bra. Oh well... at least it managed to do the trick for the day...

Christmas Reflections

This Christmas was one of many new traditions. Although change inevitably requires some adjustment, I'd say that all my new holiday experiences have been good. To start, this was my first Christmas in 5 years without the stress of finishing up exams or the worry of moving to a new city to prepare for another school or work term. VERY NICE! Although I still managed to leave my Christmas shopping to the last minute (I'll blame that on the stress of car shopping the month prior), I still found I was more relaxed and could better enjoy the holidays. I managed to spend every evening from the 20th to the 24th with friends from all facets of my life. It was great!

This year my family decided to do Christmas in Waterloo at Mark's new house since all 4 of the "kids" live in this city and my parents (being retired) have the freedom of a flexible schedule. And given the outcome of the weather, it was good that they were able to arrive a few days early. Our Christmas eve and morning routines were new and creative this year. After arriving at the St. Jerome's Christmas Eve church service at 4:30pm (scheduled to start at 5pm) to find standing room only (and even a spot to stand was hard to come across), some of us opted to go home and relax. Mom, dad, Rob, and Anita found some chairs, while Mark, Sandra, Mike, Laura and I went home and finished some last minute wrapping and relaxing. The rest of the evening was spent enjoying a yummy "pot-luck" dinner and watching Die Hard on Mark's new 55 inch television.

Christmas morning was also interesting as I was woken at 3:30am to Rob getting a bottle for Andrew, 6:00am to Sandra feeding Marly, and 7:30am to the commencement of breakfast preparations (the price I pay for not having a bed to sleep in and having to opt for the couch). Our morning activities were slow and enjoyable and somehow extended late in the afternoon. We finished it off with a swim in Mark's pool and then I headed off to London to spend some time with Andrew and his family. From London, I drove to Owen Sound for one evening to visit with some friends, and then back to Waterloo the next morning to work for a couple of days. I even managed to meet up with Ming, Nat and Kristy in Guelph for a delicious dinner and some intriguing conversation. From Waterloo it was back to London for New Years celebrations and then back to Waterloo to prepare for the upcoming week. Phew... what a schedule! But well worth it.

One thing I particularly realized this Christmas is how presents are meaning less and less to me each year. Although I very much appreciate all that I received, I recognize the fact that I actually felt guilty and overwhelmed by the amount of generosity. I think that the devastation of the Tsunami amplifies this reality. I also recognize that the news of one of my friends losing her mother to Leukemia over the holidays reinforces the fact that friends and family are what really matter the most. In honour of these two events I have decided to split my Christmas money towards two causes: the Tsunami relief fund and the Princess Margaret Hospital research fund. The gift of giving just feels good.

I hope all have had and enjoyed a safe and happy holiday too. Can't wait to hear about everyone elses stories...

Hello Nat and Kev :)

I have recently added Natalie and Kevin to my blogger "quick links". Welcome :)
Now I have more reason to stay on top of more of my friends "life happenings"....

The unfealt

Tonight I experienced something I have never ever in my life experienced so strongly... the feeling of beauty.

Tonight I met up with some of my dancing friends for our annual Christmas reunion. As always, I made an effort on my appearance (at least more so than I usually do) and was sure to blowdry my hair and apply some makeup as you are always certain to be outdone by the beauty of the others in attendance. You see... my dancing friends are some of the most beautiful people that I know. Interestingly enough, I am (I think) one of the only brunettes in the crowd. The rest are naturally (and some not so naturally) blond, and I often feel like a bit of a "black sheep" in the crowd.

The thing with my dancing friends is that you can't go anywhere with that crowd of girls without turning heads. And tonight was no different. We met at a small little restaurant in OS called Jazzmyns and had a wonderful evening together. When the night was over and we were saying our goodbyes, other restaurant patrons at the tables around us were commenting on our group and asking how we all knew each other. They couldn't help but notice how beautiful the entire group was. Another lady sitting nearby piped in and said "why of course, they're Sheila Milne's (my dance teacher's) girls" . The other lady added a few more comments about the cuteness of my friends and made a point of specifically recognizing one girl in particular -- the girl in the glasses. To my surprise (and after glancing around the room to see who else might be wearing glasses), the lady was referring to me. I can't tell you how weird that feeling was. To be recognized like that was a whole new experience to me, especially being amongst those girls. Although I don't necessarily understand her rationale, it certainly did make me feel good and blush bright red in the cheeks.

Shania Twain's Greatest Hits

I just drove from London to Owen Sound and half of my trip was spent listening to Shania Twain's greatest hits CD that I got for Christmas. Her 21-song album is FANTASTIC! I could sing along with nearly every song on the CD and danced up a storm in front of my steering wheel along the way. If you are looking for an introduction to country music appreciation, go purchase this CD. You won't regret it!! Woo hoo!!

My very first oil change

Yesterday I experienced something I had never experienced ever before in my life -- an oil change. Since my "maintenance required" light came on a few days ago, I checked my trusty car manual to learn that the pesky flashing light meant it was time for my next (first) oil change. After pricing out my options and learning that you can get an oil change at Walmart for half the price of anywhere else, I opted to try out Mr. Lube for my very first visit. And what an experience it was! After pulling up to the garage, the bay doors opened up and some guy stood there waving me in. I pulled in, turned off my car and rolled down my window to be greeted with a complimentary paper and the offer of a warm drink. While I sat there enjoying my yummy hot chocolate, he promptly started his work under my hood and checking 21 other points in my car. 20 minutes later (and $48 later), I was finished and on my way. Now I call that express service!

I can't get over the new things I get to experience with this new car of mine. I wonder when the exciting and surprising things will stop. As long as my surprises are fun and inexpensive, I will continue to be happy :)

Catching up...

My subject line works on two levels. One being that I am catching up on missed blogging time (note that this is my third post of the day), the other leading me into my next story about catching up with an old acquaintance.

I got an "update" email from an old highschool acquaintance recently. Allison sent out a mass email letting everyone know of her new contact info and requesting ours in case she didn't have it up-to-date. When I responded, I gave her a small scoop on my life story and asked her a bit about hers. This is the response I got:

...I am doing good. I am engaged and living in Peterborough. I went an entirely different route and became a flight attendant for Air Canada. lol Math - Flying, go figure. I did a summer at Microsoft in Tech Support, and after that and the end of the program I really started to hate Math. I am considering Teachers College in the future, but for now I am loving flying around the world and getting paid really well for it. It's really funny how things turn out.

In all honesty, her story inspired me and struck me with a small bit of jealousy. I realize that I am only living from one day to the next these days and am looking for more inspiration. Although the flight attendant thing may not seem to fit into my life plan for now, it's definitely something I have added to my "To consider" list for the future. I can definitely see it as being a potential "retired" plan... :)

Life has too many opportunities available. The key is to select the ones that make you happiest at the time and go with what your heart tells you...

Curling

So this weekend I experienced TRUE Canadianism when I went to a Curling party... yes... that's right... I spent an entire Saturday evening "curling it up" at the Elmira Gold and Country Club with some friends. In total, I think that there were over 40 people in attendance. The strangest part of the entire night was not the fact that I was CURLING on a Saturday evening, but the fact that I knew over half of the attendees from totally unrelated experiences in my life. And we somehow all ended up being connected in one way or another at this party. I attended this party thinking it was going to be a big Christms reunion for Andrew and all of his engineering friends that I have met along the years, but was surprised to see many others in attendance too. I saw Matty (who I at one point in my life met through Steve Fyke) and his friends (Andy, Dylan, etc) and his fiance (who I think was one of the organizers). And there was also Steph Ho and her boyfriend (whom I met through my sister I think), and Mike Cohen (who was there with his friend Mike Brookfield), and another guy Phil that I have met through UW math, and last but not least, Corinne Shaw who I recognized from (go figure) Owen Sound who went to my highschool but one grade behind me. What a WEIRD combination! Totally unexpected, but quite a lot of fun.

The evening was a riot and although I came home with two huge bruises on my knees from my poor "technique" and a few slips on the ice, I can't help but feel somewhat patriotic and a bit geeky at the same time. The whole evening I just kept looking out over the ice, watching my fellow curlers, and thinking about how bizarre the whole scenario was. If anyone is looking for a live version of "Men with brooms" just plan a curling party and I'm sure you will experience a whole new level of hilarity...

Bad Policies

What's the deal with Suzy Shier? I was doing some Christmas shopping there yesterday and picked out a couple of items for my sister (I will leave it at that since I know Laura reads my blog sometimes) and quickly learned about their sucky policies. My usual shopping behaviour is to go overkill and get a few more items than I need in the off-chance that they either:
a) don't fit
or
b) are bad taste
When I got to the cash with two items I was kind of excited about, I happened to ask about their return policy only to find out that they do exchange only with no chance for a refund (not even within a week of the purchase). So after receiving this unexpected news and feeling the pressures of the mall closing and Christmas nearing, I opted to leave one item behind and buy only one of the two items. I hope she likes it!

How on earth can this store get away with such poor service? If I had the opportunity to rethink my decision, I think I would have, out of protest, said no thank you and continued on to another store. Never again will I EVER buy another gift for someone at that store!

Details

So I have been asked to give more specifics about my car... I think I am most excited about the novelty of just HAVING a car, but I guess I should show off the fun features that I got with it!...

Although the link I posted below describes all the bells and whistles, here is a summary of my favourite features:

• colour: black
• black leather seats (no worrying about food and stains!)
• heated seats for my cold tush in the winter
• power windows/locks
• keyless entry
• CD player
• AC
• moonroof
• tinted windows (not sure what I think of these... I'm of the opinion that it looks punky)
• manual transmission
• good on fuel!
• lots of leg room for backseat passengers with an entirely flat floor (no hump in the middle)
• it even comes equipped with a leather zip case for my manual!!

Although I purchased it with 96,000 km, I am not too concerned. Given the reputation of Acura (Honda) I anticipate owning this car for at least another 100,000k! I managed to put it on my student line of credit too so until the bank notices, I'm content at paying only 2% interest above prime.

Last night I played DD for my brother and his friends after a work Christmas party (I owe my siblings big time!) and we tested out my car's ability to fit 6 people. It worked, although Laura may have a bit of a kink in her neck today ;)

I can't wait to take everyone for a ride in it. I think my car is going to be getting a few extra kilometers the next while...

WHAT?! I own a car!!??

So I think I spoke too soon... after posting my somber message yesterday about facing the fact that I may not find a car for another while yet, my luck turned. As of yesterday at 11am, I now own a 2001 Acura EL 1.7. Well, technically I still have to sign the papers, but it's mine! The dealer I was working with decided to go to the auction yesterday on a whim that it might be a good day. There was one and only one EL 1.7 to bid on, and after a few phone calls back and forth, we won the bid and the car was mine!

I'm sooo excited. This is by far the biggest purchase I have ever made! I'm so happy that I found this deal -- the car is exactly what I was looking for. I really can't ask for more. It's black with black leather interior. Even comes with heated seats and a moonroof! I got to see the car last night and it is SEXY!! You can read more about what it comes with here.

Wooooooooooooooooooooo hooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!

Girls Night Out!

This weekend we celebrated the end of Andrea's un-wedded status and took her out on the town for her Bachelorette party. It was a BLAST! Sooo sooo much fun! Although the evening was a sudden realization that we are getting old (each time I explained to someone that I was out for my friend's bachelorette party), it was simply so much fun! Andrea was a riot and we met so many hilarious people along our adventures. We made Andrea carry the ever infamous Penis cup and the rest of us joined in style by taking Penis straws along with us to each of the bars. Andrea had no fears and our new friend Ian made the night extra special at the end by giving her a private Dirty Dance on the tables at McMullen's ;)

Check out my pictures here. They're great!