Day 3! Anaheim today!

We made it to Anaheim today! All the way through Las Angeles without getting screwed up! There were like 6 lanes and lots of speedy people - Miranda you would have hated the traffic - it even made me a little anxious. But then again California drivers seem more courteous than in Van. They give more space and let people merge than others. Dad says they were better drivers in LA than in Sacramento.

Today's highlights - we saw acres of vineyards, stopped at a farmers fruit stand (in a hick town), went through LA and made it through, took a nice dip, saw 6 flags and disneyland from the highway, mik saved a little boy from drowning.. sorta. Saw the temperature spike to 36 degrees celcius. Saw some big brown mountains (steeper than the coq), and lemon trucks on the way.
(the lemon trucks! we saw a bunch of them full of pure lemons! yummy!)

- the farmer we saw had a fun accent - a plaid shirt and suspenders - gave us free samples - plums which were very tasty. we also bought this dried fruit and nut mix from him and it was the best I have ever had in my life. Dried strawberries made me like juicy janice. They were amazing - kiwis peaches strawberries bananas pineapple. I Love it.

- in the pool this little boy was holding on the edges in the deep end and then accidentaly went too far in the pool and started yelling for help and floundering. Mik was handy and helped him to the side. Yay Mickey!

that is it for now. Tomorrow is Disneyland! I AM SO EXCITED!
(Mik loves the palm trees almost as much as me ^^)

Day Two - Cali-forn-i-a

We made it to Fresno! Today's adventures included poison oak, olives, thistles, ghettos, and 'sweet tea'...
First Adventure: Going to the side of the road to take a picture of 'The California Sign' and finding cacti all around as well as thistles.
like a thistle turned 10 point tooth pick...





we went to this shopping mall and we were the only white people there.... we got dirty looks.

we also went to mcdonalds and we saw cold sweet tea! Thinking it was ice tea we got one (1 buck for a litre cup! sick...) anyways, it was gross. like sugar water with a strong black tea bag popped in.
Now we are in Fresno :) just had a nice swim in the pool here and sitting down with wifi ^^ oh lovely vacation.

Day One - State Side

Today is the first day of our vacation! To start I was woken up at 4:20am (after going to bed at 11:40.... our neighbors are stupid and loud and should know I need sleep)

Our First Stop:

Krispy Kreme
Love the wall paper.

Doughnuts are great. The plain normal ones are the best - the others are a tad over kill on the sweetness.
Mik - loving it.
But like I said... overkill on sugar!!

then there's the sugar rush...


Later on, we stopped for some drinks... I said medium and it was giant.

Right now we are about a half hour away from California. Yay! and it's nice and hot!
The sun is also bright orange... smoke + sun + haze = orange ^^

It Happened in the Kitchen....

Gross.
Dirty.
Disgusting.
Morbid?








mwahahaha so what's in the pot?

Mediocrity

I came across this quote today and found it thought provoking:

It is a wretched taste to be gratified with mediocrity when the excellent lies before us.
- Isaac D'israeli (1834)


and then making sure I got the right quote I came across this one too:


It is better to excel in any single art than to arrive only at mediocrity in several.
-Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, 61-112 AD

Life as a Movie

I think work boycotted me from working... evil boss... it makes me stressed because I need work. I might go in later and see what's going on. This is ridiculous.
Anyways, on a more pleasant note, I am bored right now, and reading forwards, notes on facebook, and all that jazz... here is one of my usual favorites:

Directions: (haha they actually give directions)
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool..



Life of Aria - The Soundtrack. Coming to theaters near you!


Opening Credits: She Came in Through the Bathroom Window - The Beatles (....)

Waking Up: There's a Reason - Mercy Me (true that)

Coming Out: Somebody to Love - Queen

First Day At School: I Kissed A Girl - Kat Perry (.... yikes)

Falling In love: You Found Me - Kelly Clarkson

Breaking Up: What's A Girl To Do? - Bat for Lashes (haha befitting eh?)

Life's OK: One Way Or Another - Mandy Moore.

Mental Breakdown: Secret Life of Daydreams - Pride and Prejudice Soundtrack (HAHAHA)

Driving: I'm Taking You With Me - Relient K (I would too)

Flashback: Breath of Life - Lord of the Rings Soundtrack (this is kind of creeping me out...)

Getting Back Together: Bleed American - Jimmy Eat World (oh dear o_O)

Birth of Child: She's A Rebel - Green Day (uh-oh..)

Wedding Scene: New Year's Day - U2

Final Battle: Beyond the Surface - Kutless

Death Scene: In Your Eyes - Kylie Minogue

Funeral Song: Our King - Tree 63

End Credits: Revolution - The Veronicas


It amazes me to see how well some titles match, but then again some definitely don't. They do for the most part. Ah well, try it! I want to see someone else's results.

New Management ....Rant Time!

At work we have a new 'manager'. I've been around for 2 other managers and they were lovely people, I got along with them and they ran things smoothly and professionally but were still level headed about things.

New Management. New "Ideas". New Power Trips. New Theories. New Woman.

From the moment I met her I don't know what it was, but something just didn't sit well with me. She's been here oh maybe a month and she is already thinking she has better ways and knows it all...
She worked at Stream. This is a hospital. Any differences? hmmmm...... YES.

From working on call I get to hear all the junk from the day shift, and then the evening shift. A lot of the talk is going on about her right now.
Here is a bit of a rant about this woman
-She is cutting back hours on one on the most crucial positions there - making it three -5hour shifts and two -7.5hour shifts. This annoys me. It's the most hated position to begin with and heck why make it worse with stupid hours? I am not even going to bid on it and that is saying something right there.
- Rolling eyes at staff doesn't seem too professional? or maybe waaay too professional?
- Forcing someone to work (an on-call person) after he had a medical leave -- major surgery and chemo therapy + other cancer treatments.
- Trying to force me to work this weekend (when I have planned to go to Vancouver and on Sunday take my parents out to dinner with Miranda - It's their 25th Wedding Anniversary! ^^)

She is a decent person, don't get me wrong, but ticking people off (that you really need because you are so short staffed to begin with) isn't wise in my book. Causing huge changes when things were finally settling down a tad (a rarity)... could be good but to me the outlook seems bleak.

Also, she was Miranda's manager at stream. She forced a mandatory hour overtime for everyone. Also I heard a story today about a streamer on her contract. He almost assaulted her
and was escorted from the building. Reason being - he was taking bereavement - his grandma passed away and was going to a funeral - plane ticket in hand and the night before he left she called him up and said that he had to work the next day or he was fired on account of other issues. He did end up going to work... irate and raging. and he quit.

Oh, she supposedly also quit before she was fired from that job.

okay okay, there is a lot of steam there. I like to rant. It usually builds up in me until I blow up unless I get to rant to someone. Lately it's Miranda. I'm sorry. It used to be Tim, but he is crazy and never online.

I am thankful that I am taking and LOA for Europe.
I am thankful that this woman doesn't hate me yet and hasn't made me miserable yet.
I am thankful that I have this job and it pays decent and I like the people I work around/with.
I am thankful that I can rant.
I am thankful that I will be going this weekend to Vancouver to visit Miranda.
I am thankful to be able to celebrate a momentous occasion in my parents' lives.
I am thankful I am needed at work so I don't worry about my job too much.
I am thankful to have a union to back me up.
I am thankful to be able to travel all over the place.
I am thankful for my $100 from ol' Gordon Campbell....
now that is a whole different rant right there that I better not even start with.

have a good night y'all

Learn something new every day

I learned how to gut/skin a bird (a big one like a chicken not a budgie I don't think...) In theory, I definitely didn't do that one.

Yesterday I went thrift store shopping with mum and dad. I seem to always find the shiny and bright coloured things. I make a game of finding the freakiest things and making mum laugh.
Oh and we were looking for jean shorts for dad and I saw a pair of white underwear with a brown stain on the backside.... sick sick sick. I hope at least they were less than a quarter.

I was also scarred badly yesterday. As we were driving I saw this old woman in a tube top. She had white hair in a little grandma style haircut, and was.. uh .. very voluptuous... oooo things I never want to remember. And I am soooo very happy I didn't take a second look. Though I think I was too shocked to look back anyways.

Yesterday we also had some company over, my Uncle Norm came over and so did my grandma and we had a nice bbq.

Getting back to the title of this post, I learned lots of stuff yesterday from my uncle. I talked to my uncle about his guns and hunting, and I think he has very good aim - to be able to nail the head of a grouse (at least I think it was a grouse) when hunting is pretty gross but impressive at the same time.
I wouldn't have a snowballs chance in hell to aim that well.
Then he went on to explain how to skin it - it goes like this - you step on its wings and pull at its feet. Supposedly all the guts come out and off comes the skin. Viola! No plucking feathers out or any of that slicing etc.
It was actually quite an interesting afternoon :) learned lots of random bits of information. Overall I quite enjoyed it - I like learning new things even if it is kinds gross.

Aria in Wonderland

I get to go to Disneyland with the family this year!
To start, I should put a little perspective on this.

Our family has never done trips/vacations like this before. Sure, we have gone on trips to Alberta to visit the family and stopped in at West Edmonton Mall once... for an afternoon...
We have traveled down the Oregon Coast... In September/October... Not being able to go to beaches and swim, unless you are insane and want to catch hypothermia...
For my 19th Birthday we were on a week long trip up to Princeton and Carameas (to get canning fruit and tomatoes). We were with my Grandma, don't get me wrong, I liked it, but it was not the usual 19th birthday with friends etc.(picture ^ from my 19th Birthday - some Italin restaurant in the middle of nowhere)
Come to think of it, I haven't had a birthday at home in a looong time. Usually on the road because it is *camp break* and last year I was even on the road in Aus. Though I definitely can't complain about that one. I don't know anyone else that has had their birthday on the Gold Coast of Australia and by a beach called Surfer's Paradise.
Surfer's Paradise

Okay, so getting back to my point, well points.

1. I have the oddest birthdays, some in places very few people have heard of. Not the party type of birthdays. Last 'party' I had was a surprise by my friend Colleen in her backyard, oh I think I turned 16 then. This year, my 21st Birthday will be spent in the USA (monumental birthday year there, not so much here in BC) on the road coming from Disneyland.

2. This is very extraordinary of my family to be able to go - mid-summer - on vacation to somewhere hot! :D AND I AM SO EXCITED TO GO!

All done for now

here is my room all made over and tidy.

maybe later...

hmmmm I think you might have caught a glimpse of my procrastination.
I have a couple of excuses: I was busy, and it wasn't 'right' yet. I wanted to be at least okay with my room before I show ya so now I am at the moment.
Yesterday I finished it off with moving the piano (yes the piano is in my room since there is no where else to place it in the house - and hell no we are not moving it upstairs!)
I am paying for the move by my aching knees and arms. But I did it!

Today I would have done it if I wasn't called into work, which I was, so there is excuse #2?

arghash my knees kill. In making an effort to be more active, I have been taking the stairs (I was working on the second floor for a week, heh not bad at all...) but this week I have been working on the forth and second. Ouch. At least up and down 5 times today. ah well I am a wuss for now, but I have to at least get in a little better shape before my big trip!

The other day I saw a car in front of me and on the rear window there was big lettering saying 'Germans are Evil' I was quite taken aback when I saw it thinking 'woah what the heck?' and then I looked closer and saw that it was a volkswagon he was driving. Now I think - was that on purpose or was he just a super idiot? By even putting 'Germans are Evil' on the back to me is idiotic and pathetic. Trying to strike road rage on the people behind you? Not the brightest idea...

Anyways, I am off to tidy and then post pics perhaps.
--------

music right now - Young Folks by John Peter and Bjorn

hmm okay, so I will post pictures tomorrow.

work and rambling.

Lately I've been getting a lot of shifts at work.. full time baby! (I am on-call so I guess on average 3 a week) but the last two weeks I've been working even more. Next week they want me for Monday - Friday.

Maybe I will have a little bit of a life? This coming week I get to work 7-3pm so I get the whole evening off. Right now, its afternoons so it kind of screws the whole day up. I get home late, sleep in sorta, and mornings are lovely - most of the time it's just me - the house all to myself, but I haven't seen Mik all week, my mom for about 15 minutes if that a day, and my dad oh a little bit more. ah well TOMORROW IS SATURDAY! I like weekends!

So anyways, in my mornings I've been cleaning!

I cleaned my room top to bottom now that it's my own again! Literally top to bottom.... if you know me, you will know what I mean.
I moved all my stuff in there again and re-arranged it all.
Mik is moving downstairs into the room I was staying in, and upstairs is going to be an office and a guest room. Wow-e

I am actually looking forward to having Mik come downstairs. I am a people person most of the time. I always was downstairs when Miranda lived down there and bugged her and basically hung out there only coming up for dinner, tv and sleep.

but now that I live down there, nobody visits so I go upstairs a lot more than I used to. I'm looking forward to helping Mik arrange her room and get everything together and finish mine completely. ah I love getting things organized.

P.S. I need a big world map to put on my wall... ebay Miranda?
hopefully I can cover up this hideous 70's retro mirror with paint crackled on it.

Will post pictures in a few minutes after I do laundry and actually take the pics.

ah I don't like my posts pictureless.

I'm It.

I've been tagged by Miranda to list 10 random/weird facts or habits I have.


1. I can flip both my thumbs completely backwards. I can dislocate all my fingers, wrist, and my left shoulder...

2. I really hate it when I can hear people chewing. My biggest pet peeve. Makes me cringe. Bananas are probably one of the worst sounds, and so are big crunchy chips.

3. I've eaten Moose, Deer, Rabbit, Kangaroo, Bear, Squid, snails, and raw fish to name a few of the more random things.

4. I can never eat anything like 'momo's' again (made them in India). Kinda like tempura or deep fried won ton things. They make me feel so sick - most likely since it was the last thing I ate before getting the sickest of my life. Just thinking of them gives me a nauseating feeling in my stomach.

5. I've husked, cracked, and ate and drank a coconut on the beach in Australia... It was tough work.

6. I broke my nose when I was three.... spinning + stairs + music = no good. I ended up in a hardwood door.

7. I wiggly my contacts around (while in my eyes) and it freaks people out.

8. My stomach feels not good on the swings, yet I have no problem with roller coasters and thrill rides.

9. Goal - to visit all continents (except the arctics) . So far 3 (soon to be 4 out of 6)

10. I twiddle my thumbs when I am bored.

I tag James - he blogs less than me I think. If you see this, you're tagged.

ink pink you stink

Ouch. Like on Miranda's blog, you can definitely tell that we were in the sun today. My face is itchy and stings, so do my legs and my chest. Really awesome time with Miranda and the family in Vancouver today. I love beaches. I love sun. I like tans...I hate burns.

ug being 'pale' or in other words pasty sucks. Burns easy and never tans. I don't really know what happened, but I actually may have a tan starting on my arms! I hope that my burns turn into a tan.
This is my second burn of the year, first wasn't bad at all (I wore sunscreen like 3 times that day) and today I couldn't find the sun screen I brought. Ouch I sure paid for that one.
ah well it was fun anyways. Here I am - burns and all - all my face, scalp, arms, legs, chest, shoulders. Ah anything that got sun.

I will get to that tag question later though. Time to watch a movie.

todays thought?

"The contemplative life is often miserable. One must act more, think less, and not watch oneself live."
Nicolas de Chamfort

I like quotes, they are simple lines (usually) that make me think. I think I think too much too much of the time. Sure it's good to think before speaking...that I seem not so great at, but for the most part I over think way too much and will probably end up stressing myself out over what could come of this situation, or what will happen if I ....

That is probably one of the hardest things for me, I am not spontaneous very much, and if I am I am usually wary of what might happen. Probably since I wasn't able to think things through and figure out what Might Just happen before hand.
Life is way too unpredictable to think out situation after situation and I think that I get caught in just 'watching' life pass me by too often.
Note to self: need to think less, stress less, and get involved.

quote of the day

"If you cant fly, run. if you cant run, jog. If you cant jog, walk. If you cant walk, crawl. But by all means keep moving."
Mr King

I saw this one on my starbucks' cup the other day and found it thought provoking.

news news news

News:
Jen (the girl living with us at the moment) had her baby on April 30th and now she is home :) baby girl at 9 lbs 8 oz.
I like babies.
I got to hold her and feed her and oo so nice. I even got to poke in on them in the hospital since I was working that day too. awww she is such a sweetie pie :) Mum and Mik think I am a baby hog since I have held her more than them. but hey, it's just because I was there.



In other news:
I got my plane ticket today!!! I leave Vancouver on the 16th of September, arrive in London Heathrow Airport on the 17th, and return on the 11th of November. oh wow I am so excited!

I love flying. My flight's going to be 9 and a half hours... but I love it. Aus was much much longer but I still loved it. I remember seeing turquoise water around tiny islands that were almost perfect. aww I miss it. OH! AND I remember seeing the sunrise over the ocean with big puffy clouds and beautiful clouds...oh it was awe inspiring.


.... hmm but I didn't really like the one going from India to Singapore.... the girl behind us puked all over the aisle... it smelled rank and their air fresheners gave me a headache and + all they did was put a blanket over it. Sick.

OOO and this one time from Seattle to Texas there was a thunder storm and I remember hearing a *BANG* and dropping .. woooooosh. My stomach in my throat and white knuckling it
until we landed. haha Teresa looked at me and said "Are you okay??!" hahahahha - this was my first real flight too.

.... uhhgg and flying home from Texas.... I was so sick and felt completely miserable and the pressure felt like knives (and I mean big steak type knives) going through my ears and jabbing in my brain. I also coughed so bad I felt sooooo bad for the other people in the plane. I probably had the plague and gave it to everyone there too.

haha I still think that the good outweighs the bad.

Any tales or horror stories?

forwards and all that crap

I hate forwards, I usually delete them unless I am super bored and read the newest in my inbox. Today was one of those days, but this one is actually not bad. So I am going to post it on here. Think of it as an email hahaha

Thanks to you, I no longer open a public bathroom door without
using a paper towel.

I can't use the remote in a hotel room because I don't know what
the last person was doing while flipping through the adult movie
channels.

I can't sit down on the hotel bedspread because I can only
imagine what has happened on it since it was last washed.

I can't enjoy lemon slices in my tea or on my seafood anymore
because lemon peels have been found to contain all kinds of
nasty germs, including feces.

I have trouble shaking hands with someone who has been driving
because the number one pass-time while driving alone is picking
your nose (Although cell phone usage may be taking the number
one spot).

Eating a Little Debbie sends me on a guilt trip because I can
only imagine how many gallons of trans-fats I have consumed over
the years.

I can't touch any woman's purse for fear she has placed it on
the floor of a public bathroom. Yuck!

I must send my special thanks to whoever sent me the one about
poop in the glue on envelopes because I now have to use a wet
sponge with every envelope that needs sealing.

Also, now I have to scrub the top of every can I open for the
same reason.

I no longer have any savings because I gave it to a sick girl
(Penny Brown) who is about to die in the hospital for the
1,387,258th time.

I no longer have any money at all, but that will change once I
receive the $15,000 that Bill Gates/Microsoft and AOL are
sending me for participating in their special e-mail program.

I no longer worry about my soul because I have 363,214 angels
looking out for me, and St. Theresa's novena has granted my
every wish.

I no longer eat KFC because their chickens are actually horrible
mutant freaks with no eyes or feathers.

I no longer use cancer-causing deodorants even though I smell
like a water buffalo on a hot day.

Thanks to you, I have learned that my prayers only get answered
if I forward an email to seven of my friends and make a wish
within five minutes.

Because of your concern I no longer drink Coca Cola because it
can remove toilet stains.

I no longer can buy gasoline without taking someone along to
watch the car so a serial killer won't crawl in my back seat
when I'm pumping gas.

I no longer drink Pepsi or Dr Pepper since the people who make
these products are atheists who refuse to put 'Under God' on
their cans.

I no longer use Saran Wrap in the microwave because it causes
cancer.

And thanks for letting me know I can't boil a cup of water in
the microwave anymore because it will blow up in my
face...disfiguring me for life.

I no longer check the coin return on pay phones because I could
be pricked with a needle infected with AIDS.

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone will drug me
with a perfume sample and rob me.

I no longer receive packages from UPS or FedEx since they are
actually Al Qaeda in disguise.

I no longer shop at Target since they are French and don't
support our American troops or the Salvation Army.

I no longer answer the phone because someone will ask me to dial
a number for or which I will get a phone bill with calls to
Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore and Uzbekistan.

I no longer buy expensive cookies from Neiman Marcus since I now
have their recipe.

Thanks to you, I can't use anyone's toilet but mine because a
big brown African spider is lurking under the seat to cause me
instant death when it bites my butt.

And thanks to your great advice, I can't ever pick up $5.00
dropped in the parking lot because it probably was placed there
by a sex molester waiting underneath my car to grab my leg.

I can no longer drive my car because I can't buy gas from
certain gas companies!

If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the
next 70 minutes, a large dove with diarrhea will land on your
head at 5:00pm this afternoon and the fleas from 12 camels will
infest your back, causing you to grow a hairy hump. I know this
will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next
door neighbor's ex-mother-in-law's second husband's cousin's
beautician...

Have a wonderful day...

Oh, by the way...

A German scientist from Argentina, after a lengthy study, has
discovered that people with insufficient brain activity read
their e-mail with their hand on the mouse.

Don't bother taking it off now ...... it's too late.

I think I got almost all of those forwards one time or another. It's pretty sick. But whatever I know that some people will never stop sending them.... it's like an addiction towards spam = (stupid pointless annoying messages.)

Now go and break that chain letter that is waiting in your inbox. You know it's been going around since 1864!

I have wings again!

Ah! I am so excited! I have final dates set for my trip this fall.
From September 16th to November 11th I will be backpacking across Europe with my friend Susan (hahaha backpacking with an American in Europe)
I am so excited! I can see my friends from YWAM again! At least a couple of them.

So the trip so far - start in London, England. Make our way up to Liverpool, and then to York and visit our friends.
Then back down to London, onwards to France (not sure if it will be through the chunnel or by boat yet).
Down through France, hitting Paris of course, and then down to the south coast, on to Italy, hitting up Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples? - then to Greece!

The next bit is the hazy part - don't know if we are going to go the way we came or go through, say, Switzerland? Germany?
But we are going to go to The Netherlands - go to Delft and visit another ywamer! yay! and then through Belgium or something to get back to London and fly home.

Still in the planning phase with the details (hence the green bit), but this week I am getting flights to and from London. Oh I am so excited to see my friends again - I never thought I would again. AND this will be my forth continent to set foot on.

If you have any traveling tips or idears for the trip would be cool. I've traveled a bunch before, but not like this. So let me know what you think.

bored on photoshop

Oldies

I was watching an episode of 'The Twilight Zone' on youtube just now and it reminded me of BATMAN!
I loved watching the re-runs on tv when I was younger. The *BAM* *THWAP* *WOOOSH* are awesome. Too bad I haven't seen them on tv in years.

Sick

this is a true bacon burger... deep fried to boot.


Step 1 Grind your bacon.
Step 2 Form A Patty.step 4 Make a batter and smother it on.
Step 5 Deep Fry.
Step 6 Safety First! Temp that sucker.

hahaa today my friend's been sending me all these random videos and pictures and stuff. Boredom + hunger + internet =

oh and just for kicks here is a 10 patty whopper... 15000 calories.

McDonalds

A friend of mine sent me this video to watch:






Then that put me into the idea of mcdonalds... and here are some adds from:
Turkey:



Egypt:



India:



Russia:



Japan:


Here's to boredom!

Christmas Ham the sequeal

The other day Matt and Katie, Chris, Kate and Lilly, and Auntie Ange came over for dinner and it was awesome. We played spoons which became ruthless after a bit, and I broke out a jones.....
This time it wasn't Christmas Ham, but Christmas Tree. Here's the vid.

ranting

I'm just thinking out loud here so yep here we go. Oh and I guess this sounds very biased and maybe even mean but whatever it's my blog :P oh an no I am not trying to sway anyone away from their beliefs. or say don't be a vegetarian/vegan.
I've found that from my mum that all the cooks in the kitchen at camp really uh... 'dislike' vegetarians.
The bad ones mess it for everyone. You know the ones... or should. The ones that won't eat anything unless it is specially made for them...and then later on dump a whole lot of beef gravy on their poutines. The ones that can't eat anything served - because it contains traces of trace amount of animal products.
Come on people. It is a choice but don't make others suffer in the middle. I don't think that a little milk product in something will kill (unless severely allergic) . Yes I know that standing up for a belief (killing animals is wrong and blah blah blah) but that is not going to stop people from eating meat. Not that that is the point to start out with but.. ya. There will always be meat eaters, then their will always be animals 'treated poorly' to make meat edible for them. Yes, I know that it doesn't have to be that way, that eveything can be peachy keen with everything, have some rainbows on top of that and yay! Animals will never be killed or hurt so those freaky meat eaters can eat something..
Geez.
okay so byproducts of products that could contain trace amounts of animal things.

okay so choice. choice is good. its a right we have in this lovely country we have. Being a straight vegetable eater is good, I like not eating meat for a change, though I don't think I will do this forever. but who knows. It's made me think of all those vegetarians in a 'new light' not just something that is weird and picky. I know some people even do it becuase they cannot digest meat, it's all good. if that is what makes you feel good about life and rainbows and lovely stuff it's all good. but does it completely kill to eat trace amounts once in a while if in public, say at a conference or something? Instead of
I don't know if I would call myself a vegetarian, I do eat only vegetables but I am not for all they may stand for - if anything, and I would eat meat if there was no other option.

the other day I had the worst day at work and I came home and ah shucks, there was only pizza with meat on it. That sucked. so I said screw everything and I shoved two pieces in my mouth... ham and pineapple by the way. I was too angry to care.
ah well.
I gotta go eat some breakfast now. and see everyone eat bacon.. now that is one thing I think is simply disgusting haha but anyways.

there is my biased thoughts and rants and I like vegetables.

this may not make any sense to anyone but I like to type and mention that some people have to bust their buts to make special foods for special people... even if it is a simple choice for them on their side.

bye :)

Perfection!!! I WANT IT NOW!

Yesterday I made pies pies pies! I love making pies. I blare out my music, dance , and bake all in one. Kinda sounds like I'm getting high... hahaha not. I just find it and it's like I get 'in the zone' almost. Yesterday was alright for pies - I made one berry one first and it didn't set at all (so I thought) and I was angry because I even added extra cornstarch! >:(
so that one didn't turn out, so I made another one - this one did, though it turned out to be so dark - that makes me kinda angry too (I usually make lovely pies - golden crusts and all that jazz, but not yesterday.
So I made a crust, had scraps left over so I added them to my pile and made a sorta half pie. Then I made the berry one, then came another crust for the lemon meringue (which I did this morning) and that one had more dough left over.... enough to make another crust... but I ran out of pie plates hahahaha so hence the funny looking pie. It's chocolate by the way (and cling wrapped in the picture)
chocolate ^^^
mixed berry (strawberry,blackberry,blueberry.... ya it goes on) \/
The lemon meringue made me angry this morning. First I woke up at 6 - the phone. Bloody dang phone! (I am not a morning person usually) so ya, work called, I didn't want to work so I screened it... then 10 min later... and 10 min after that... until I was too angry and picked up the phone and said ' no I cant work today' and hung up.
then I am awake (and angry >:( )
I remembered that I needed to do the pie before the turkey today so I might as well do it now.
It all went okay - my first lemon meringue.
>:( it didn't work as well as I would have liked. I beat the eggs too much and it wouldn't make peaks.
makes me disappointed and angry.
I think I am a perfectionist....

now is turkey time. I am going now so bye.

oh and I didn't take a picture of the berry pie (because we ate it - thought it was too runny... but it turned out decent) and the other one we ate too. sick so much pie. I am going to be pied out soon.

Glorified clothes hanger?

So I went to Mik's fund raiser for a school field trip . It was a garage sale of all things. First thing I see is an elliptical (my favorite thing to play on at the gym) so I was looking, and wooaaah it was 15 whole dollars. I thought naw.... it wouldn't work. But I tried it, it works perfectly, so my mum was like go for it - I thought heh its 15 dollars (two gym trips) so why not give it a go.I love it. Best 15 in I've spent in a while. I now have it in my room (no other place really) and it is nice. compact. and I put my computer in front on a chair and watch tv on my computer. I LOOOVE IT. It has a digital distance (in m AND km! hahaha), calorie, speed and time counters. The only thing missing is the heart rate monitor but I don't care for that much anyways.

Anyways, I made an awesome soup yesterday - beans (whole bunch of random ones), canned tomatoes, celery, carrots, and onions. It took a long time to finally finish (with the beans and all) and in the end well worth it. Add some easy biscuits and lovely dinner right there- actually everyone ate it (and I was just thinking I would).
Also I went with my mum shopping - she knows more about vegetarian food than I ever knew/would know. So she was telling me about all the subs and stuff - got lots of beans, nuts, dried fruit, spinach, ooh the list goes on - but the newest was quinoa - its like seedy grain stuff - and you can put it in lots of things - I like it in salads so far - and it's cool.

I love sweet chili sauce. On anything hahaha (maybe) even great as a salad dressing.

I had 3 cups of coffee today..mmmmmm I think I might be addicted.

OOH one more thing -I got my mum an awesome Pride and Prejudice box gift thingey and it's awesome. I didn't know what was all in it - but got the soundtrack, a book, movie, and oo so pretty! That movie I think is my favorite. It looks like a lovely book and aww makes me go all so girly and sigh every time I watch it. ^^

have a good night y'all!

Veggie?

So I have been thinking lately, heh why not try out vegetarianism? I always thought I would never be able to do it but I want to actually try.
it's something different and new for a change - something challenging.

I think the only thing I will be missing is chicken and meatloaf (sounds weird but it's a comfort food). No idea how long I'll be able to do it, but I was thinking taking like 2 months to try it out or something.

So I told my mum yesterday and she was all like ' if I see you eating unhealthy I will force feed you' and my dad was in the kitchen and he looked at me with the 'who are you and what have you done with Aria' kinda stare.

So this is day two of my challenge and so far so good.

Anyone have any good recipies?

Tastey Muffins

as I said, I am sooo much better at baking than cooking.
they are lovely to look at, haven't had one yet (because I am waiting for the ones still in the oven)
Blueberry bran muffins. I googled a recipe and the second one I found I could make. so far so good. 3 min to go in the oven.

I modded the recipie (like I usually do) with the only apple sauce (the best home-made stuff ever) we had in the fridge, and hell no to non-fat milk. My family is dead set against anything less than 2% hahaha.
Oh and for the last batch it looked like it was lacking berries so I popped in some blackberries.
This probably sounds boring but I am bored before I pop them out of the oven.

recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Low-Fat-Blueberry-Bran-Muffins/Detail.aspx

mmmmm I love berries. They are the best.

So it's been a while

oh how many times have I started out like that... haha
ah well
I was just going through the 'favorites' list on my sidebar and looked up some of your blogs (I guess I am more of a lurker than poster but oh well)

I was looking up on my 'favorites' again.. went to this cooking site, then bloggers, and wow here i am - so I thought about posting random dinner idears - (Miranda you inspired me so this is mainly for you!)
So here are 10 random things that popped out of my brain right now:
- crepes (oh so yummy and you can use some of those blueberries - also alright with jam if no berries... but I know you have them)
- quesidillas - I've had this thing about spicy yummy food lately, and salsa is great (so is sweet chili sauce)
- sweet n sour meataballs!
- farmer sausage w/ spuds and some veggies and all that jazz
- butter chicken - get a jar - dump - add chicken - voila! hahaa
- or go for a breakkie type farmer sausage w/ eggies in a basket. I haven't made those in years. (in case you don't know - bread with a hole in it and egg in that hole... and fry.)
- poutine plus whatever you feel like
- the freezer assortment - pick out some edible things and cook and eat.
- sloppy joes
-grilled cheese and tomato soup - so classic so tastey

so there ya are for random food idears hahaha
now I am going to go find something to bake.. I like that better than cookin haha

Alberta!

So there and back again from Alberta. It was an okay trip considering what was happening and stuff. My great grandpa died last satuday (he was 102 almost) and it was good and bad. A lot of my family will be missing him, yet at the same time I am happy he is in heaven with his wife, brothers, sisters, and his son - and not to mention Jesus of course. To me and a lot of others it's bittersweet.

The trip getting there was good - roads not too bad from what I thought - ahh! so much time in the car though! and stuck there fighting with Mik sucked. But we got over it. OOO Going there we went through weather that was -29 in some places. It was beautiful with snow. But now I am sick of it - it's there, here, everywhere.

It got to the point (later on in our trip) where we thought -15 wasn't so bad anymore. At first I thought -15 was insane.. silly me hahaha

I hate being cold. I've been cold for ages, and can't seem to keep warm even in 'normal' weather out here -so it was brutal in Alberta, but I think I climatized? ah who knows. Weather was coooold. Wind was even colder. I felt my snot freeze in my nose as soon as I went outside the door (most of the time in Alberta)

So anyways here are pictures, we saw tons of snow, it was pretty. and cold.

I wasn't even up against the snow bank... it was crazy big. this was at the top of the roger's pass I think.

these ones are on the coquahalla highwaya. lots of snow.

I miss warm sunshine and hot weather :(

MWAHAHAHAHA

Miranda this is for you.

I did it! Just like the good ol' days... I 'found' my html, made it my own
even my own bkg!

Doesn't it remind you a tad of neopets?

FYI: Miranda and myself used to make websites and did amazing html through neopets way back when. I first learned how to 'view source' ... and alter.... and make it better.

Aria = 1337 geek.

hahaha. Now I got the code I can change it all!

Only in India

so it's been a while since my last post. I thought I would put a video on that reminided me a lot of India.... yes I was in that - the little rick shaws to the buses, to the cabs, to walking. It was crazy. But awesome at the same time. I never got hit by a car! *or vehicle for that matter*
Enjoy.

The Best Blog Ever!

Ya, I know it's not mine. It's THIS ONE! lol well maybe to some people... like me.
http://www.vanmega.com/

The Story:

My friend gave me a mix cd for christmas (I love mixes so much) and she got it from this site. The guy takes awesome songs, mixes them, and puts them on the internet. Genius :)
I have been downloading this evening.....
I love long songs, because then I don't have to worry about hating the next one, skipping, sound glitches, or all that junk.
I went running 2 days ago with one mix - didn't need to mess with my ipod at all when I was going. It was lovely. Beautiful day, vitamin d gettin in - it's all good.

:End of Story?



I got a cool shelf from Ikea yesterday... I am going to take pictures of it and show next time I think. But not until I finish moving stuff around, cleaning, you know, all that jazz.

I hope tomorrow is as clear as it was today, even though it's frigid cold outside, I still like it a whole heck of a lot better than rain.

Today started awesome - I got to work early, sat in starbucks reading my new book I got for Christmas - "Through Painted Deserts" by Donald Miller.
Had my coffee... mmmmm I love it. and then walked to work (just a little ways) in the fresh morning sunshine - and cherishing the moments I had in it while it lasts.


Hope tomorrow starts even better - it's a day off for me - and a major cleaning one which is nice.


Later gator.

Change is good

So I was bored earlier this week on my day off and decided to re-arrange and re-organize my room.

I moved everything and cleaned it all! yay! Call me a finatic, I don't care. I love clean, organized, and lovely. SO the piano that was in the same spot since we moved here, I moved, and Miranda there was nastiness under there. Dust bunnies which were massive. I was sneezing for a while. Oh and I found some crayons, haha and a bill you never even opened... from a year ago at least. ah well it's clean now ^^
take a peek in my lovely room :)
I need something for that big empty space.... ^
notice the ugly not even retro chic mirror? haha sick.
So there it is. Completely different now. Let's hope it's more functional now.

Resolutions?

Happy New Year Everyone! :D

SO I know lots of people that actually do New Year's Resolutions - and that is probably a hot topic for bloggers today too. BUT I am not one of them that does the resolutions. I don't know why, I guess because why should it be one day of the year that you make a goal and have a year to fail it? Yes, this sounds negative, but for some resolutions are good, for others, it's depressing and annoying at the end of the year to think of the failure.
I am not joining the trend. Just going to do my own thing like usual.
Good luck to the resolutioneers out there :)

But here are some very common resolutions:

1. Loose Weight:
the picture is of one pound (1 lb) of fat compared to a mug. Thank you google.


So comparitively thinking - weight loss - thinking of the lost pound(s) and actually relating that to an amount - seeing how much it actually is. Pretty good to lose that much so good on ya. Also think of how nasty fat is - depending on how much fat% you have - the picture - shows how gross it is.
Ever seen one of those liposuction surgery shows? sick.
hahaha

2. Quit Smoking:

Um. For one, it's a disgusting habbit and it should be kicked asap. Thinking of what you are sucking in your body, let alone breathing on friends, family, and kids? Unhealthy. Nasty. Kick it.

3. Fix Finances:

Some people are wanting 'outta da debt' or just wanting some extra savings, a bit more 'to play with' etc etc. Finances are probably one of the hardest resolutions to fix/figure out in my opinion. So many people are in debt as is and see no way out. Everything from student loans to mortages to car payments. Two words: it sucks. I can't really say much without being a hypocrite, other than be cheap and thrifty. Be 'meno-to-the-max' hahaha

4. Do something new:
no idea for a picture for this one. Maybe take up a hobby? For me - blog more? ha this one is pretty self explanitory. It's almost as similar to another resolution - "be a better person" like where the heck to start with this one? Do the typical - 'volunteer, help community, jog, make a friend, give a homeless guy a cofee? ' who knows. Not I. That's why this one is one that I wouldn't even do - I do new things automatically I guess.

5. Time management and Organization:
oooo I love organization. I just organized my dresser with cool organizer thingeys from ikea. yay I finished one already! haha not.

I want a full room to keep everything organized in... ahhh I keep dreaming. Fully knowing that wil not happen this year.
and as for time management? I love writing things down, keeping calendars, organization is a wonderful amazing thing that I can not live without.
Here is my brain wanderings:
Unorganization = mess. Mess = chaos. Chaos = unproductivity. Unproductivity = no $. No $ = debt. Debt = Stress. Stress = smoking. Smoking = unhealthy. Unhealthy = sick. Sick = death. Death = ? you know.

So there's my yatterings for New Years. Let's hope that all your resolutions come true, BUT your number one should always be organization - look where it gets you without it!?