Congratulations!!!

Hello all...
Well, it is time to celebrate!! My dad is getting married :)
(and who said guys don't move fast??)

He proposed to Irene last week while at a five star restaurant in the Malahat Mountains on Vancouver Island. Very romantic :)
I'm very happy for them and wish them all the happiness they can handle. They sure do deserve it!

Bank Account

A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably coifed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. His wife of 70 years Recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.

As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on his window.
"I love it," he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.
"Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait." "That doesn't have anything to do with it," he replied.
"Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged . it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it. "It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up.

I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away. Just for this time in my life.
Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.

So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank. I am still depositing.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

1. Free your heart from hatred.

2. Free your mind from worries.

3. Live simply.

4. Give more.

5. Expect less.

How Happy Are You?

I missed the show last night. And I regret it. Everyone was talking about it at work. Thank God for web sites. Read the blurb below and take the test... How happy are you?



Dr. Holden says the key to being happy is overcoming "destination addiction," which he defines as "living in the not-now."

"It's always about tomorrow, so you're chasing 'more,' 'next' and 'there,'" he says. "You promise yourself that when you get there, you'll be happy. And I promise you, you won't, because you'll always set another destination to go for."

Instead, Dr. Holden says if you are unhappy with your life or looking to improve your score on the satisfaction test, there are two things you can do. "We have to learn to let go of our past, we have to give up all hopes for a perfect past. Let the past go, it's gone." After that, he says, "Take a vow of kindness. Be kinder to yourself and to others.

"It's never too late to be happy," he says.

The Open Toed Shoe Pledge

As a member of the Cute Girl Sisterhood, I pledge to follow the Rules when wearing sandals and other open-toe shoes:

I promise to always wear sandals that fit. My toes will not hang over and touch the ground, nor will my heels spill over the backs. And the sides and tops of my feet will not pudge out between the straps.

I will go polish-free or vow to keep the polish fresh, intact and chip-free.
I will not cheat and just touch up my big toe.

I will sand down any mounds of skin before they turn hard and yellow.

I will shave the hairs off my big toe.

I won't wear pantyhose even if my misinformed girlfriend, coworker, mother, sister tells me the toe seam really will stay under my toes if I tuck it there.

If a strap breaks, I won't duct-tape, pin, glue or tuck it back into place hoping it will stay put. I will get my shoe fixed or toss it.

I will not live in corn denial; rather I will lean on my good friend Dr. Scholl's if my feet need him.

I will resist the urge to buy jelly shoes at Payless for the low, low price of $4.99 even if my feet are small enough to fit into the kids' sizes. This is out of concern for my safety, and the safety of others. No one can walk properly when standing in a pool of sweat and I would hate to take someone down with me as I fall and break my ankle.

I will take my toe ring off toward the end of the day if my toes swell and begin to look like Vienna sausages.

I will be brutally honest with my girlfriend/sister/coworker when she asks me if her feet are too ugly to wear sandals. Someone has to tell her that her toes are as long as my fingers and no sandal makes creepy feet look good.

I will promise if I wear flip flops that I will ensure that they actually flip and flop, making the correct noise while walking and I will swear NOT to slide or drag my feet while wearing them.

I will promise to go to my local nail salon at least once per season and have a real pedicure (they are about $15 or 20 and worth EVERY penny).

Sorry, sorry, sorry...

Hey y'all... sorry!
I know I've been neglecting my duties to blogger... I've been playing on facebook and it's really quite addictive. I've connected with a ton of Canadaians I met while traveling to Australia, people I worked with when I worked for Walt Disney World, and people I worked with when I worked for Norwegian Cruise Line. I've also found a ton of people I went to elementary school with, highschool and college... CRAZINESS!!!
So, now that I have most of my addiction under control (ya right!), I'll be sure to post a few more of these in the future...so, today's inspiration is:



Growing up we realize that there are a lot of obstacles along the way...
Being grown-up we realize that the only obstacle in the way is ourselves.
- Jennifer M. Jesseau


I hope you all had a fantastic Easter Weekend!
May God bless you and your family :)

It's all about Facebook now

Okay.. so, like my friend Kathleen, I feel I may lose a little bit of sleep due to the fact that I just can't seem to log off of Facebook. Check it out. It's pretty cool.

Nevertheless, much like the entertainment of finding my long lost boob twin (see post below), I have discovered all sorts of interesting ways to entertain myself...

Your Birthdate: August 26

You lucked out with the skills to succeed in almost any arena. Put you in almost any business or classroom, and you'll rise to the top. You're driven and intense, but you also know when to kick back and cooperate. Your ability to adapt to almost any situation is part of what's going to make you a success. Your strength: Your attention to detail Your weakness: You can be a little too proud of your successes Your power color: Turquoise Your power symbol: Arrow pointing up Your power month: August

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

My Celebrity Boob Twin

okay... so, this is a bit of a joke. When you go to this website, you have to put your bra size in. Well, they didn't exactly have my boob size... so I chose the next thing closest to it. And Claire, I apprecaite all your help. But you still have cleavage, and I don't. So this does NOT count.

Your Celebrity Boob Twin:

Claire Danes

Who's" Your Celebrity Boob Twin?

Secondly, I have officially started a Plastic Surgery for New Boobs for Jenn fund. Please feel free to make a donation.

One Flaw In Women

One Flaw In Women

Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,
but they hold happiness, love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy
and laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer
when they believe there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel
and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about
a birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member,
yet they are strong when they
think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss
can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you
to show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have the compassion and ideas.
They give moral support to their
family and friends.
Women have vital things to say
and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,
IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

Thanks Julie for passing this on to me...

Happy Now?

Does success make you happy, or does happiness make you successful? This might sound like a pleasant topic to debate over tea some afternoon. But for psychologists, poll-takers, economists, and other observers of behavior, it's crucial. Their quest for answers has recently produced a 50-page article in the Psychological Bulletin, which reviewed 225 scientific studies of this subject.

So what did the researchers find out? The short answer is that while success probably does make people happy (it's better than failure, at any rate), it is also true that having a happy temperament (defined in the article as "long-term propensity to frequently experience positive emotions") enables you to do the things that turn into success. Your "positive affect," which is the outward sign of your happiness, will make it more likely that you'll land the job, find friends, form a happy marriage or other intimate long-term relationship, make money, be loved in your community, and be healthy. The evidence regarding health is only suggestive--happy people tend to say they are healthy, but that doesn't mean they really are. We do know from other research that having friends, love, respect, "social support," and agreeable employment--as well as optimism and a positive attitude--do tend in the long run to make people healthier.

Plowing through their accumulated evidence, the researchers asked whether happy people are better off, whether they cope better, whether they reap larger social rewards, and whether they have stronger immune systems. And the answers were invariably yes, even though the evidence for stronger immunity is, again, only suggestive so far. But happy people seem to do better socially--they seek out other people, they solve problems creatively, and so on. They are more resilient and thus adapt better to adversity.

Be happy, don't worry? Still, questions remain. Most of this research applies only to people in western cultures--and in relatively nonthreatening situations. Maybe "a propensity to experience positive emotions" works well when you have no serious problems anyhow; but when the hurricane or the earthquake shakes you up (or you get fired, or are diagnosed with a serious illness), a propensity to happiness may be less helpful. And as the researchers point out, a happy scam artist might be more effective at committing fraud without getting caught than an unhappy scam artist. Sometimes happy people are judged shallow or complacent. Furthermore, discontent or deep unhappiness can be huge and effective motivators. Some unhappy people are very successful and creative. There are always costs and trade-offs.

Perhaps the most that can be said is in the study's conclusion: happiness is a great asset, but no guarantee of a perfect life.

UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, April 2006

Thought for the week...

A healthy respect for yourself is VERY important.

How you feed (or not feed yourself), how you treat yourself (negative self-talk/empowering self-talk), how you respect yourself (or disrespect yourself through abusive behaviours - smoking, over-drinking, over-medicating, etc.) says a million things about the way you think about yourself.

Do you have respect for yourself?
Do you treat yourself the way you want other people to treat you?
Do you treat yourself the way you should be treated?


Something to think about...

Steve Wild

Still looking... And it's amazing how many people there are named Steven Wild from the States. Who knew? Anyway, I'm still searching and so far no luck locating this guy. Hopefully something will turn up soon. Thanks Gramps for your help. It is appreciated.

So, I'm still working toward getting my house this summer. The contract is being drawn up now and hopefully everything will run through smoothly... keep your fingers crossed!!

Dad's friend Irene is visiting with us. She's been here for about two weeks now... three and a half more to go. She's a good sport, meaning she is still coming to yoga with me on Wednesday nights, which is impressive. And she cooks! I come home from work, and, there you have it, a complete meal waiting for me. It's the most amazing thing I've ever experienced. Totally. Who knew life could run so much more smoothly when your food is prepared for you??? Maybe I should get married. To a man who likes to cook. Any takers?

I've fallen off the wagon with my work-outs this past week. I've been feeling weak. Headaches, stuffy, runny nose, tired... to name just a few symptoms. Which is unlike me. I can't remember the last time I was sick. Funny thing is, I don't FEEL sick. Just worn down. A little stressed out. I need a vacation.

Had dad's birthday yesterday. He turned 57. He still looks amazing. We all got dressed up in our dressed-up clothes, put on our leather jackets, and hopped into a limo. We went to the Edgewater Manor Restaurant in Stoney Creek. What a great meal. Irene was with us and Grandpa came along too. He said it was the first time in a limo, and probably the last. He's 94. And yes, he really did say that out loud. We all had a good time. I guess I acted like the lady with the money last night, as when the bill had come, the waiter politely presented it to me. It was really quite... a compliment? LOL. Who would have thunk?? Maybe one day I will be able to afford to make those reservations at a place like that for myself. One day. Anything is possible, right?

Steven P. Wild

Well... I'm trying to find a friend. And I'm trying to use the power of the internet to find him.

Ten years ago, while on vacation in Jamaica, I met a guy named Steven P. Wild. He was a US Navy medic and we spent two nights talking our faces off. After he left, and after I left Jamaica we kept in touch for almost two years via letters. Then things drifted, and I haven't written, nor has he. I never got a home address as he was constantly on the move. However, through correspondence, I know his parents, at the time, were living in Cortland, NY (30 minutes south of Syracuse). Anyway... All I'd love to do is to find out what he's been up to, if he's happy and healthy and to say hello. I feel that we never had the proper opportunity to say good-bye and good-luck and feel that it's necessary... I don't know why, but I just had the most amazing, most overwhelming feeling that I needed to find him, to contact him in some way. If anyone has any ideas as to how to find someone, pass them on! I don't know where else to look. I've created a Facebook profile and now posted a message on my blog... if anyone has ANY ideas, please let me know.

Never Settle for Second Best...

Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will stay awake just to watch you sleep. Wait for the guy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in your sweats, who holds your hand in front of his friends. Wait for the one who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares about you and how lucky he is to have you. Wait for the one who turns to his friends and says, "...that's her."

Today's Read

Do yourself a favour, and check out this.
Too funny not to pass on.

Also... came across this and thought it was pretty good.

DEAR WW: I've got some complaints about my company, and I'm thinking about starting a blog. What do I need to know before I post my first entry?

OFF MY CHEST


DEAR OFF: A child recently born in a hospital hallway in West Yorkshire, England, shot out of her mom so quickly that she hit the floor and skidded before the umbilical cord acted like a bungee and pulled the baby back toward mom. Just like that "bungee" baby, your blog comments can fly right back in your face. So you've got to proceed with caution before blogging. I've included a few suggestions below. For more, check out Nancy Flynn's book, "Blog Rules" (Amacom, 2006).

Do you know what a blog is? The word blog is derived from Web log, a personal journal on the Web (mine appears at ABCnews.go.com/Business). If you didn't know this, you're not alone: 30 percent of employers don't know what a blog is, according to a recent survey. Contact people who write blogs about work to find out the dos and don'ts.

Are you willing to get fired over your blog? People have been fired for writing blogs about work. I'm not saying that you should let this intimidate you from writing one, it's just important to understand the potential consequences right from the start.

Do you know your corporate policy on blogs? Before you post your first blog, you need to know where your company stands on them. Read your company handbook and talk to people in Human Resources. However, don't assume that you can say anything just because your company doesn't have a formal policy.

Do your rely on the First Amendment to protect you? Most of us know about our First Amendment protections concerning free speech. What most people don't understand is that this protection concerns government's ability to limit your ability to speak out. The First Amendment has nothing to do with speech surrounding a private enterprise. You can go to court to fight for this right, but you need to understand that it's far from guaranteed.

Do you understand what employment-at-will means? Most employees in the United States are "at will" employees. As a famous court case once observed, "You can be fired for a good reason, a bad reason or no reason at all." I'm not saying that you aren't entitled to your opinions, but voicing these opinions could get you fired.

Are you willing to look at what you wrote for a very long time? We tend to think of the Internet as transitory. And it often is. At the same time you can't control how long something stays on a server somewhere. So realize that you rant against XYZ corporation could potentially be dug up when you are interviewing for a job 10 years from now.

Except for a few bruises, the "bungee" baby was fine. Follow these tips and you should minimize things flying back at you because of your blog.
Written by the Working Wounded guy.

Bitter Sweet

What you are today is the residual effect of your choices from yesterday. What you want to be tomorrow will come to fruition by the choices you make today.

So, in other words, if you want to lose fifty pounds, then maybe that Pepsi Slushy from the Seven Eleven you get every morning isn't such a good idea. Just a thought.

Stolen

Stole it from Liz. Who stole it from Kat...

And here ya go...

Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Fruit Picker in Australia
2. Junior Auditor for Norwegian Cruise Lines
3. Bartender
4. Accounts Receivable

Four movies I would watch over and over:
1. Fight Club
2. Point of No Return
3. Under the Tuscan Sun
4. Ocean's Eleven

Four placed I have lived:
1. St. John's, Newfoundland
2. Ancaster, Ontario
3. Lake Buena Vista, Florida
4. Australia (all over)

Four shows I like to watch:
1. Grey's Anatomy (my new fav. show!! Thanks Carrie!!)
2. CSI Las Vegas
3. CSI Miami
4. Any home reno show including Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Four places I have been on Vacation:
1. Fiji
2. Portugal
3. British Columbia
4. Jamaica

Four of my favorite foods:
1. A steak dinner at The Keg
2. Pad Thai
3. Indian
4. Anything at Milestones :)

Four of my favorite animals:
1. Cats
2. Dogs
3. Dolphins
4. Lions

Four places I would rather be right now:
1. On a beach in a bikini
2. In bed all snuggly while in the arms of a lover
3. At the gym
4. Travelling anywhere... Tuscany sounds really nice...

One of my biggest Pet Peeves.....

Book smart, common-sense stupid. I hate these people.

How can you go your entire life not getting it? It's like doctors with no bed-side manners or Professors who can teach University level mathematics but can't hold a conversation.

To get to my point, there is a girl in our office that I can not handle (I should probably say woman, or lady, but I can't. If you come into the office on jean-day wearing a pink wind-breaker, a She's-So-Kitty t-shirt that is so "look at me I'm twelve" and love to walk around like you're the shit but you really need to lose a hundred pounds - then you're a girl. Not a woman. Not a lady.)

This particular girl is extremely book smart. I'll give her that. She makes a point of saying things like, "I negated to tell you...", or, "I'd like to execute this project...", or, "This girl I know is so infallible...", or, "Things around here are tumultuous..." I could go on and on and on. In my opinion, she does this to make herself look smart, when really she's quite insecure. Our office manager fails to think that she has a confidence problem. I believe this is based on the fact that this "girl" walks around flinging her hair and bouncing her fat all over the place, bumping into people and being loud and obnoxious. As the author Jen Lancaster likes to say, "What an ass-hat!".

I know this may sound a bit harsh, however, I have justified reason to complain, for just a moment, as the girl was incredibly rude and disgusting at lunch hour yesterday. As I'm preparing my lunch, she proceeded to talk about "great racks" and how she witnessed a woman "shave her snatch".

Ahem.
Where she saw this is beyond me, as I know for a fact the girl does NOT work out. So it couldn't have been a gym shower-room. I immediately cut the conversation off before I was to yack all over the kitchen counter. She got confrontational with me and compared her conversation about snatch-shaving to my conversation the day before about Irritable Bowl Syndrome and how THAT was inappropriate. HELLO???!! HOW? How does that compare??

I left the kitchen with my salad and tuna and ate at my desk. Five minutes later when she walked by I stopped her and very firmly told the girl that in no way does my conversation about IBS compare to her conversation about snatch (does she have no class at all? Does she not care that using a word like that around a lunch table is totally gross?). Wildly flipping her dyed hair back and forth like she was trying to catch a breeze between the ears she tried to speak. I stopped her very quickly and said, "Nonnnonononno.... I didn't ask for your opinion. I'm just telling you how I feel." She turned around and mumbled confidently (which really doesn't make much sense) that the two DO compare. WHATEVER!

Dumb ass. I can't wait to for her to either quit, get fired, or I move on to a better job.

So, to really get to the point: Smart people are really stupid!

Amy's Art

OH YA! I almost forgot to mention...

Be sure to check out my friend Amy's web site:

www.amydemille.ca

Talk about talent!!

Do you feel it?

Can you feel it?
Can you sense the difference?
Can you detect the shift in thought, in emotion, in direction?
I ask you this because I can feel it.
I can sense the difference.
And I can detect the shift in my thoughts, my emotions, my direction.
And Kathleen verbalized the same thoughts to me on Friday night.
No, it was not alcohol induced talk. We were not delusional. Or psycho.
We both feel it, and I'm sure there are a ton of you who feel it too.
Things are changing, things are adjusting, things are shifting.
Are you ready?
Maybe you should watch The Secret.

No longer Debt Free

So, Friday night there were four of us who went out for a night on the town for Liz's birthday. Now, I am by no means complaining about the amount of money I spent, because then I'd just be playing stupid. And I'm not stupid. But I do have to tell Kathleen, who paid for our bill while at Slainte's Irish Pub so that we could all escape the bar quickly, that I need to go on a payment plan to pay her back. LOL.
I do not regret what I spent either. I have not been out with the girls and ripped up the town like that for almost ten years.
And of course, the best part of the evening was spent in the taxi. Zachary, our first cab driver was berrated for smelling like a mixed sub. Dr. Phil, our cab driver home was kind enough to smoke a cigarette with us while in the cab and laugh at all of our pathetic jokes and slurs... and the fact that Victoria slid out of the cab onto her back and into the slush-puddle while still managing to keep one leg inside of the cab was... very entertaining. My stomach hurt from all the laughter.
Thanks ladies for a stellar night... too bad I didn't take any pictures :)