Pointless photos of the day:

No, the Turkey Brothers aren't supposed to be on top of the stored mattress. My fault for leaving the door of the downstairs bedroom open as I was folding clothes.

It's been an interesting urinary morning here. And yes, I meant to use that word. The cat who's been fighting a urinary infection and just finished his course of antibiotics decided yesterday and today to pee on the floor instead of the box again. For anyone who has a litter-trained cat that suddenly decides the floor is a better place, by the way, it's often a sign of infection or urinary crystals (or in this case, both). Either means get to the vet. This particular cat will be going back this week.

In other news, Dad is pretty sure that he has a kidney stone. Told you that it was a urinary day. And my sympathy and empathy to him, because I get them too.

In other other news, it was a pretty windy day yesterday so I didn't get a chance to get too many new pictures. Ah well, you'll no doubt be seeing the poor lot that I did get.

In other other other sadder news, a group of teenage boys decided that it might be fun to go into Calgary's Canada Olympic Park two nights ago and try out the bobsled run with a toboggan. What they didn't know is that the starts of the bobsled run and the luge run are separated by a heavy gate, which they ran into at speed. Two dead, six injured. Sad, but to add to it, these weren't stupid kids. The two killed were honours-student twin brothers. It was just teenage boys being teenage boys and getting into what they probably thought would be minor trouble. I can't imagine that poor family right now. Not to make excuses because (as if we needed more proof) stupidity can kill you and that was pretty stupid, but it's an awfully harsh lesson for all of those involved.



I don't want to end on that note, so... um... how about rocks?

Let's see.

How about my favourite rocks, in absolutely no order:

• Amethyst
• Lapis Lazuli
• Any number of Jaspers
• A fair number of Agates
• Certain Garnets
• Amber
• A bit of Jade is nice, too

I should add in Topaz and Aquamarine too, I suppose, but to be honest those have more to do with a couple of pieces of jewellery that I own and the people that I inherited them from.

Notice that diamonds aren't this girl's best friend? I think that they're important for their hardness, but as gemstones the only reason they're so overly desired is that De Beers and company made up a market for them. You can look that one up for yourselves, by the way. I'm tired of linking. Oh, and my lack of enthusiasm for diamonds doesn't mean that I don't appreciate my uncle's gift of his, of course. I sincerely do. Again, though, it's more the person than the stone.

That's enough for today, and yes, it is lunch time. See you whenever I have time in the week.

So quick, no pic

Thoughts before the weekend:

Anyone who's on a New Year cleanse needs to be told that your body doesn't need that. Your liver and kidneys do that for you. If they don't, you have very serious medical problems. And if a cleanse is making you feel better, you should look at your nutrition rather than your toxins. Juice cleanses often provide nutrients that your body needs. If they advertised them that way rather than the bullshit toxins approach, I'd be willing to listen.

On a similar note, nutritionists and dietitians aren't the same thing, folks. Dietitians study and have professional requirements in order to be legally employed. Nutritionists are people who think that they know things about food. They may have studied but they're not regulated so who knows what they studied. Guess which one is more likely to sell you on cleanses?

On a totally different note, last night's tea, The Big Chill, has a pleasant but sort of unidentifiable taste, which isn't surprising considering the ingredients list. Same concerns about the valerian as I mentioned the other day, though. Today's tea was Alpine Punch. I've had it before; I like it. Still can't figure out what coconut has to do with alpine anything, but there you go.



And there you go for real. See you Monday, possibly.

Various things... oh, and a pointless cat photo

Bet that's a surprise.

Immediately after I took this shot he started chewing the coat, of course.

I think I got fully initiated into the cat family yesterday. Dad was away for a bit, and the Turkey Brothers were entertaining themselves. Like most kittens, these two have two gears: GO!!! and full stop. Well, when Tom reached the wall and retreated to his bed (oh, you'll see the bed. Don't worry), Bob wasn't quite done and came over to me to futz around the recliner I was sitting in.

Bob futzing around a chair is a lot more polite than Tom futzing around a chair, by the way. Bob doesn't tend to try to nibble on your face.

Anyway, he fiddled around for a while and then realised that he was tired too... and curled up in my lap. For two hours. It would have been even more, but eventually even I have to get out of a chair and do something so I moved him to the bed with his brother.

Being a Bob bed means that I fit in, right?

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On another topic, I need a haircut.

Yes, already.

See? This is what happens when I actually try to have a hairstyle. It's fine for a couple of weeks, but my hair grows so frustratingly fast that by the third week I'm looking at it and realising that I need to make the choice of haircut or growing it out again.

Growing it out again usually wins. Who wants to pay for a haircut every three weeks?

The problem is that I really kind of liked the cut this time. She razored the layers instead of scissoring them, so it has (had) a different, slightly shaggier feel. It framed my face pretty well, too. In fact, I liked it enough that except for one day I've been wearing it loose to work. I'm generally lucky to make it two days without tying it back in some way, so that's big.

By the way, if you don't believe me about my talent for speed hair let me just say this. When it was cut I was incapable of making a pony tail. Now? No problem. It's a short pony tail, yes, but I tried it out of curiosity the other day and everything stayed in the elastic. Really.

Sigh. I didn't want to be needing a haircut so soon, and even worse, I didn't want to be wanting a haircut.

Stupid haircut. Why did you have to be good?

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One last thing, because it wouldn't be me if I didn't end on an annoyance. Always. You know, the menstrual supply brand. Do they hire advertising firms that consider women to be puerile little children on purpose? For years we had to put up with the insultingly cute have a happy period. It's ok, little girl. We don't care if you're cranky and bloated, this magic pad will make everything sunshine and rainbows! And now, as anyone who (still) watches television will know, they've gone into the bladder leakage market. And their slogan? Because, hey! Pee happens.

Seriously? I have no words.

At least tell me that these stupid things were written by men. If it was a bunch of women who decided that the above were both good ideas, they need to be taken out of their boardroom and reminded that the average woman in the actual world understands when she's talked to as an adult.

And if I find myself in the need, I'll be going for Poise (lesser of two evils, really). Because, hey! Sometimes an insulting ad campaign hurts your bottom line.

And speaking of bottoms, I'm going to stop typing now before I get into those bloody Charmin bears who apparently wipe ABOVE their tails. Ugh. Enjoy the go?

I have no words.

Pointless cat photo of the day:

Dressers are fun.

These shots have been from two weeks ago. I'll be seeing them tonight. I imagine that at the rate that kittens grow, they'll have a little trouble fitting in that narrow space under my dresser now.

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Another short workday post, but I do have a couple of things to say. First, to the follower tools who waited in line for a day for an iphone whatever (yes, I know what it is, but if you only knew the depths of my uncaring...), jeeeeesus. Really? We haven't got over this crap yet? And I'm certainly not going to apologise for calling you follower tools. You're followers, and you're tools. Well, I suppose I am sorry -- that you're follower tools. The world certainly doesn't need more follower tools. Especially ones who will line up for a phone.

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Now to something more serious. I was pleasantly surprised by the results of the Scottish referendum. That makes it sound like I was against Scottish independence, but I really don't have a horse in the race. I can't even claim Scottish heritage, unless you go way back into antiquity when the tiny fraction of my ancestry that's Irish was probably going back and forth trading, invading, and most likely procreating. What I don't really get is the idea of nationalism coming before economic stability.

I mean, yeah, sure, be proud -- within reason -- of where you were born. I'm happy to have been born in Canada. I'm happy to be Canadian. But the reality is, if I'd been born in Scotland I'd be happy to be Scottish. If I'd been born in Croatia I'd be happy to be Croatian. None of us have any control of where we were born, and putting pride of accidental place over the fact that the (Western, at least) world is moving towards less trade barriers and trying its damnedest to avoid another financial collapse just makes me think that you're not really considering things.

Quebec has thought about separating (and by the way, big hearty boos to those PQ members who thought it would be a great idea to take advantage of the Scottish referendum and show up there, say a bunch of stupid things, and start planning their next attempt). Texas talks about separating. Heck, even here in Alberta we have separatists. None of it would be of ANY advantage to any of us. Nous vivons ensemble, if you want to put it a bit more romantically. Which I honestly don't, actually. Romance shouldn't have anything to do with it at this point in our history.

Sigh. So much for a short post. Back to work, then. And if you want to hear rather than read Gordon Lightfoot, try this link.

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Edited to add: arrrr. Sorry I fergot, me scurvy mates. Hope ya be havin' a fine Talk Like a Pirate Day.

Frustrating

 Not the anemones, no. I think that they're rather nice, actually, and it amuses me that they contain secret porn.

Look below if you don't believe me. You might have to click on the photo to see it full-sized. And of course I didn't mean human porn; just copulating beetles.

What's frustrating at the moment is my father's computer. It's served him well over the years but it's definitely showing its age, especially to someone who works on something so much faster during the week. To boot this thing up on a Saturday morning, for example (and I promise that I'm not exaggerating), I come down, turn on the computer, sort the laundry, start the first load, go back upstairs and make some breakfast, and then come back here... and eat my breakfast while I'm waiting for the computer to be ready to do anything.

Yes, seriously. And then, of course, there's those random moments where you'll be working on something and the computer will decide to go all hourglass for you never know how long. Sometimes a minute; sometimes you're better off finding something else to do for a while.

I was going to say that it's practically an abacus, but that would be wrong since people who really know their abacuses (abaci?) can get stuff done amazingly quickly.

Incidentally, I have an abacus. It's mostly meant as an ornament, but it's fully usable. My speed on the abacus? Comparable to this computer. As I said, it's been chugging along doing its jobs for years, but since I've had three different computers at work in the time he's had this one -- and I work for a non-profit, so it's not like we replace things quickly -- I'd say that it's time to retire the old hamster wheel, Dad. Besides which, XP isn't supported anymore. Isn't that excuse enough?

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Another frustrating thing that I meant to talk type about ages ago is perfume. I read a "must have" cosmetics list a while ago that honestly kind of ticked me off a bit with the stupid things it suggested. Ok, maybe the list didn't tick me off so much as the stupid women who wrote it and the stupid people that I know would follow it. In the first place there is no such thing as a must-have cosmetic. Hey, I wear make-up. Of course I do. I've also been known to go out without it without being totally horrified. Or, I hope, horrifying. Frankly, I think that the amount of money some women spend on make-up is more horrifying than being seen without cosmetics.

Same goes for shoes, by the way. I completely don't get the shoe thing.

Anyway, one of the worst must-haves on the whole stupid list (and believe me, there were some really stupid things on the stupid list. Do stupid people really live like that?) was fragrance. Fragrance to put on in the morning, fragrance to freshen up with during the day, fragrance to top up with if you're going out right after work... it goes on and on and I hate it.

Yes, really.

I'm just wondering if a) people actually do that, and b) have they ever been around another human being? From what I've seen, the usual reaction to a perfumed person is what is that smell, and not generally in a positive way. Perfumed people advertise their arrivals, don't "leave" until some time after they've gone, and cause even those of us who don't have scent allergies to want to back away when speaking to them.

And let's talk about scent allergies. I work with kids. I wish some of those scented people could see the slight look of panic on some of those kids' faces when they enter the room. Does everyone have their inhalers, boys and girls?

No one should have to put up with that. The perfume industry is huge, and I don't understand why it's even necessary. You want to smell nice? Be clean. Yep, that's it. That's all that's necessary. There are enough scents in our soaps and shampoos that bathing is really all it takes to have a... let's say signature scent. Of course, not bathing gives you a signature scent, too. Your choice which suits you.





So, considering that blogging may or may not happen over the next couple of weeks, is this enough words to satisfy? I hope so, because I tried. If the order of the words doesn't do it for you, you could always cut them out magnetic poetry style and rearrange them. Send me your poems, even. It'd make for a few posts.

Lunch, now. See you when I can.

Annoying things and a dog

And a Christmas Cactus named Fred (yes, really) who doesn't know when Christmas is. Yep. He's blooming right now.

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First annoying thing:

We occasionally bringing in baking or snack foods (in varying degrees of healthiness) for the staff, and it all gets left on a certain shelf in the hallway that most of us walk past repeatedly during the day. Next to the shelf is a garbage can. Explain to me, then, why a person will almost always find empty containers left on the shelf on food days. There's a garbage can right there, fer Whomever's sake. Take that extra second and a half and move the garbage to the garbage can. Or even better, to the recycle bin if it's recyclable. It's not hard, people.

Or maybe it is, for some reason that I haven't been made aware of.

It was danishes today, in case anyone was wondering. Boss's treat.

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Puppy interlude:

For the past couple of days I've been sharing the office with a dog. No, I haven't exchanged Wheat; Wheat's family just has a brand new puppy. New as in nine weeks old, and not even a name yet (there will be as of tonight, I'm told). It's been entertaining as all heck, and considering how young he is and that they only got him a couple of days ago he's been doing very well. He'll be very well socialised around here too, which leads to my question...

Why do normally intelligent adults talk to puppies as though they're talking to mentally deficient babies? I've heard so many varieties of absolutely horrifying baby babble in the last two days that I'm wondering if someone put a Leave Brain at Door sign outside of our office. I've heard that baby talk is a natural (if unfortunate) response to human babies and may help with speech development (sigh) but how exactly is that supposed to help a dog?

It'll help a dog feel like people are idiots, as far as I can figure.



It's a cute puppy, though. And did I mention entertaining?

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Ok, last annoying thing, and I'll try to keep it short:

We're having a bit of a measles outbreak in Alberta, and there's an important protocol to be followed to prevent things from getting serious. For students, for example, any child who has been exposed whose parents can't provide up-to-date immunisation records must stay home from school for twenty-one days. Yes, it's a long period of time, but it's massively important to keep things from spreading. Now, here's the reason that this comes into my annoyance post. Those parents who for various stupid and/or misinformed reasons (and I'm not going to get into that whole argument, but I would like to suggest that you google the real science as opposed to the Jenny McCarthys of the world) haven't had their kids vaccinated -- and in one medium-sized school currently affected I hear that it's over eighty kids -- will have to find alternate ways to school their children for nearly a month.

And some of them are pissed.

And I? Have no sympathy. You've put your children at risk, you've put other children at risk by making easily preventable diseases more prevalent, and you've forfeited your right to complain by not looking for the whole story.

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There. I think I've had it out for now. Be prepared for future puppy stories, because did I mention entertaining as all heck?

So. Not. Happy.

Know why you're getting flowers again today? Because of the amount of snow that I had to clear off of my car this morning. And the amount of snow that I had to drive through to get to work. And yes, I'm still very cognisant of the fact that the east coast is getting far, far worse, but THIS WINTER WILL NEVER END.

Gah.

Anyway. Want to see the stupidest thing I've found on the internet today, just to take your mind off of my grumpiness (because I know how concerned you must be about that)? It's this.  And since that's a news link that will probably disappear in a while, I'll just say briefly that a hotel in New York that I refuse to name because it doesn't need the publicity is offering what they call a Social Media Concierge service for weddings. That's right, bridezillas, for a mere $3000 they will provide you with someone who will live tweet your wedding, manage your pinterest and facebook and whatever else, and even create your own very special hashtag.

Because hashtags is haaard for some folks, I guess.

I couldn't believe it when I read it, but the sad fact is that there will be idiots out there who will gladly shell out the $3000. They're the same ones who pay $10 000 for a dress they'll wear once. It boggles me that they even exist, but they do.

I sometimes watch those wedding shows you find on The not-so-much Learning Channel (remember when that channel had other programming besides idiot brides and freakish families? I do. Barely), but mostly out of sheer whatthehell. The amount of money these people will spend on the stupidest things. And then, of course, they have total fits when the stupidest things aren't absolutely perfect. Starting your married life in complete debt seems like a pretty wrong priority to me.

I've mentioned this before, but back in the stone age when I actually dated and had a fairly serious guy for a while, I teased my mother by telling her that if I ever married I'd just JP it in front of a couple of witnesses. She was horrified. She tried the tack of asking whether my family didn't deserve some sort of celebration or party, so I said that I'd JP it and then have a barbecue. My dad was so proud...

I really was teasing her, but as I've got older I can't help but wonder if that isn't the smarter way to do it anyway. No pressure, no things have to be perfect, no fits, and no debt. It just seems like a much more intelligent way to start a new life.





How in h-double-hockey-sticks did this become a wedding post? Ah well, weirder things have happened on this blog. Back to work now. I may decide to work from home tomorrow, so take a few of the extra words from these past couple of days and make a new post for yourselves, if you like.