I Am A Dull Person

Sorry gang, just nothing interesting going on these last few days. So I will apologize right now for today's posting.

Let's talk hair.

Today I worked up the courage to walk into a hair salon and book an appointment. It's a funky looking place that's just a few blocks down the road. I've had so many experiences with bad haircuts so I was pretty up front in speaking with the owner about wanting someone that is good with long hair. The owner was super nice and put my mind at ease. He introduced me to Lynne who would be my stylist, offered me a cup of coffee and told me to sit down for a consultation so I could talk over with her about what I wanted and look at the colour charts. I've got an appointment booked for next Saturday morning so I guess I should do a before and after picture to document the occasion. If it's a bad hair day, I guess you'll all find out.

Now let's talk about the men. What is the deal with all the shaved heads and brush cuts here? I can understand that with the wind and rain it's very low maintenance but it just can't be warm. Not a big fan of that look though, it just makes me think of thugs. Give me a head full of thick soft curls any day. The brush cut just doesn't work for me.

But that's just my humble opinion.

Hiya

No I'm not about to karate chop you but "Hiya" is a very common Glaswegian greeting. Not sure why but that's what they say. From the cashier at Greigs to the person calling in with a pension question. It just doesn't roll off the tongue yet for me.

Pet peeve of the day... why do they only sell coffee in tiny 227 or 250g packages? If anyone is aware of where I can purchase a pound of coffee I'd sure appreciate it.

Boxing Day

Started off the day by FINALLY doing the dishes left from our party Christmas eve (ick). Then we walked around to try and find a place to get a good cup of take away coffee as we weren't sure what would actually be open.

Got back to the flat and caught my Aunt Barb and Mom on the computer and had a nice 3 way chat compliments of Skype. It's a pretty cool program and saves on long distance costs.

Then, I know this is soooo exciting.... I balanced my bank book, budgeted grocery costs, ate some left over turkey dinner and watched Pirates of the Carribean on BBC1.

Yes, life here is more exciting than you can imagine ;>)

Christmas Day

Santa came, Santa came!!!



It's Christmas in Glasgow. Brenda and I did stockings in our lounge and then packed everything up and headed over to Andrew & Jen's to spend the day with them. It was a very long day but great. Complete with traditional turkey and all the fixin's, Carl having fun with all the Christmas paper and spending time with friends.

I wish you all a very Happy Christmas

Sunday - Christmas Eve

It seems weird that Christmas Eve is on a Sunday, although I guess that is the case every 7 years. The day starts off as per any normal Sunday. Church in the morning, brunch after, then a little window shopping. And then picking up the last few things needed for the party and for Christmas (I was missing one stocking stuffer).

Back to the flat and then I hit the kitchen and start putting my menu together for the evenings festivities.

Here's the end result:



So the food it out, the flat looks festive... what if no one comes? Everyones big fear when you plan a party. But wait, yes everyone came - and even a few extra!



Andrew didn't make it into the picture as he ran back to his place as we ran out of wine and I'm not sure where Brenda is. It felt really nice to have a house full of friends.

We went to the midnight mass at St Mary's. It was a bit different as it was a High Communion so men in funny hats and robes. Lots of standing (still not sure what the significance of that is). But the one nice thing was after you went up for communion you were given a candle you lit it and then sat back down in your pew. When everyone was done they dimmed the lights in the sanctuary and it was very cosy. But I did think it was a huge fire hazard. After the service Brannon & Gloria came back to our flat for another drink and some more visiting. I think we got to bed around 3AM.

Saturday

Just playing some catch-up with the blog, so here's Saturday...

I walked into city centre to finish up my Christmas shopping. It was pretty busy but not as packed as it's been before so I guess not as many people leave their Christmas shopping 'till the last minute. There's always some buskers playing along Sauchiehall.

There's this rock band that I've seen a number of times.

And then always a bagpiper or two.













I picked up what I needed and then headed back to the flat to drop off my bags. On the way I stopped at a store called Au Natural which is kind of like Wonderbucks from Vancouver and purchased some candles and decorations to try and make our flat look a bit more festive for our Christmas Eve party.

After coming home I scarfed down some lunch then headed back out again to buy the groceries I needed for the party. I started to head towards IJ Mellis to get some cheese but there was a line-up out the door of the shop halfway down the block (who new cheese was so popular). I picked up some spicy olives from a Mediterranean deli, fresh veggies and then wine was the last thing on my list for the day.

Back to the flat again and up the four flights of stairs to drop off the groceries. I'm done shopping for the day so next I grab my laptop and pack it up in my backpack and head down the street to Beanscene to grab a coffee and some free wifi. They give me a card for 15 minutes free access, but after that you have to pay. So I spend most of the time editing my pictures that I've taken the last couple of days and when they're all done then I go to log-in to load them up.

There seems to be a bit of a problem, I can see that I've got a strong signal but the log-in menu is taking forever to load. I give up after about 10 minutes as my coffee is cold and I'm just not in the mood to fight with a slow system. Note to self, don't go to Beanscene again for wifi. There are a couple of other coffee shops in the area that have free wifi rather than charging you after 15 minutes so I'll try those on another day.

Back to the flight and up the stairs for the last time. Brenda's home now and we just zap leftovers for dinner and focus on finishing the tree and decorating the flat. I think it looks good and it's starting to feel like home.

It Didn't Seem That Far At The Time

Last night I got a Christmas tree. I got home from work a little bit early as I promised myself I would get the Christmas tree. There was a guy selling trees off Byers road that I remembered his trees were already discounted so I headed off that way. I passed Roots and Fruits on the way but their trees were still full price.

I got to the place and there were only a few trees left. I asked if he had any small trees left and he said no, only big ones. Well how big, so he showed me the few that were there and the one was about my height (a little over 5' 2"). I picked it up and thought, that's not too heavy - no problem. The price was right at 15 pounds and I had the guy help me put it up on my shoulder and off I started.

I got about 5 blocks and it started to slip. But that's OK, the tree was wrapped up pretty snug so I sort of hugged it. But another couple of blocks and it started slipping again. At this point I'm thinking I should flag down a cab, but I'm too cheap for that. So I switch arms, another few blocks and I need to rest. Try the tree hugging thing again and I make it as far as the bridge and I have to put it down.

I'm just in the process of grabbing my phone to call Brenda to find out where she is when she texts me with "need a hand?". Hallelujah! My arms and hands were shaking so bad I was having problems handling my phone. So she came by about 6 minutes later and we carried it to the flat, up 4 flights of stairs and got it through the door in one piece.

We borrowed a pretty cool Christmas tree stand from A & J it comes from Germany and you know about that German engineering thing. Got most of it decorated tonight and will finish tomorrow.

Saturday's plan is to finish up the Christmas shopping and then I'll come home, pick up my laptop and head to a coffee place with free WiFi and then I'll finally be able to post some pictures.

My body hurts today, I should have taken the cab.

Old Habits Die Hard

Well it didn't take long that's all I can say.

I didn't leave the office until close to 8PM tonight. Reports needed to be run, a letter drafted but I did take a lunch today and I actually managed to eat my sandwich. I had 3 1/2 staff off today which meant I had to help out with phones and forgo my scheduled training.

I needed to pick up some groceries on the way home so by the time dinner was finally on the table it was after 9PM and I'm only in my 2nd week. I don't know whether to feel revitalized by the challenge or curl up in a little ball thinking I've made a huge mistake.

I think things will get better after the new year. Only 2 weeks in and already I'm looking forward to the holiday break. But to be fare there are a few people that I work with that have been great and offering me lots of help and answering my 1001 questions of the day and trying to keep me in the loop. It's just been so long since I've had to learn a new job that it's all a bit overwhelming. And even though it's with the same company, procedures and protocols are not the same. I had to figure out how to use a letter template tonight, something that in Vancouver an AA would have done. Here I have less support but more responsibility.

I just need some time and then I'm sure my instincts will kick in again. Still, it was awful nice being on vacation for 2 months. But until I become independently wealthy or find my sugar Daddy I need the paycheque.

Still no Christmas tree, just didn't get home in time.

The Status Quo

We're pretty much moved in but as mentioned in my last post the Internet signal I'm getting here is only accessible from my bedroom and it's very weak so I'm not able to upload any pictures.

Still extremely frustrated with the bank at the moment. I sent my paperwork off almost 5 weeks ago, I've missed my first pay date as a result and now I'm not getting paid until Dec 29th. We aren't able to get any phone/TV/Internet hooked up until I have a bank account as that is the first question they ask "Do you have your banking information with you".

So if worse comes to worse I'll have to pack up my laptop and head on down to the Beanscene on Friday night, order a coffee and post pictures there.

Home Sweet Home

Score! I'm picking up a wireless signal from somewhere so I'm able to do a quick post. It's a weak signal, but it's doing the trick. It's 11:37PM and my suitcases are finally unpacked :>)

Tomorrow I hope we are able to get a Christmas tree as the big bay window in the lounge is the perfect place to put it. I'll take some pictures tomorrow so ya'll can check out the new digs.

It's good to be home.

Christmas At St Silas

Went to the Carol Service at St Silas tonight. I decided to attempt to use the movie function on my camera for the first time so here is the result.



It's not much to see but I liked the drum rhythm being played for the hymn. It felt very Celtic to me. If you listen carefully you can hear my alto line in the background.

There may be a slight interruption in my posting for the next couple of days. We move Tonight (Monday) and I need to order our phone/internet connection for the new flat and I'm not sure how long it takes to get a service guy out to do it. I'll try to post from the office or perhaps an internet cafe, but it's the Christmas season.... we need to get a tree, finish shopping, parties to attend etc etc etc.

Trimming The Tree

Had a very lazy day today. I'm just really tuckered out from my first week back to work. So I stayed in all day catching up on emails and doing mundane stuff like on-line banking. Caught my Aunt Barb, then my Mom and lastly my Dad all on MSN Messenger later in the afternoon. If any of you out there are on MSN Messenger let me know and I'll add you on my list and maybe we can chat.

In the evening we were invited to Andrew & Jen's to help decorate their tree and enjoy some Christmas goodies and some mulled wine and finished the evening off with a dram of Glenmorangie. Heather came over as well and it was really nice to visit with her. She flys back to New Jersey tomorrow morning to spend Christmas and New Years with her family and friends.

So just a nice relaxing Saturday.

Men In Skirts

Tonight was the staff Christmas Party. I have never seen so many men in kilts before, it was a bit surreal. Yet I found it strangely attractive on some. I didn't stay much past the meal as it was a room of 250 people, 98% of which were complete strangers. Dinner was nice and I had a good chat with Debra beside me (Mom of 2, works in a different department and location from me so I won't see her again until next year's party).

I think for me what was more beneficial was going to the pub with a few of the boys from the office beforehand. There I was at least able to get to know people I'll actually see and work with on a daily basis. I did receive one proposal of marriage after about half an hour into the evening when it was discovered I was a whisky girl and I liked the good stuff and drank it neat. I guess it doesn't take much in this town.

So one marriage proposal down, but still no date for Saturday night.

Strange

Hugging The Porcelain

It started Friday night.

Poor baby Carl got sick after he had gone to bed. They weren't sure if maybe he ate too much or perhaps the tri-coloured corn pasta didn't sit right with him. He seemed fine afterwards and no fever. But then as I found out the next day, he'd been up sick all night.

The stomach flu had hit.

Then Sunday night Andrew got it and was down for the count. Wednesday night Brenda was hugging the porcelain (am I a bad flat-mate in that I didn't hear her get up?). Thursday it was Jen's turn.

I feel quite confident in saying I will NOT be next. I've had no contact with patient zero and Brenda and I have separate bathrooms so no cross contamination. Plus I had a flu shot in September.

But only time will tell. Stay tuned....

Lists

As the year is coming to a close, people are starting to make lists.

The latest one I saw today was a top ten songs of the year. I have such a hard time narrowing down music to favorites as I just have so many. I love all the music I have.

One of the things I found very hard to part with was my stereo and all my CD's. I tried desperately to get all my CD's converted to MP3's and loaded onto my laptop but as I started the moving process I just ran out of time and was only able to get up to the M's.

Now that I'm living in a different country I'm being exposed to new artists. But darned if I could tell you who they are. Usually I'm just listening to the radio for a bit while cooking dinner so I'm a bit preoccupied and DJ's these days are not all that great at telling you who it was they just played.

But back to the list comment.

I don't think I could narrow it down to 10 songs or even 10 albums. So here's my list of random number of Albums I love.

1 - Ryan Adams, Love Is Hell Volumes 1 & 2
2 - Amos Lee, Amos Lee
3 - Gillian Welch, Hell Among The Yearlings
4 - Bebel Gilberto, Tanto Tempo
5 - Beck, Guero
6 - Bill Frisell, The Intercontinentals
7 - Jack Johnson, On And On
8 - Richard Buckner, The Hill
9 - Interpol, Turn On The Bright Lights
10 - David Grisman Quintet, The David Grisman Quintet
11- Pilate, Caught By The Window
12 - John Mayer, Inside Wants Out
13 - Soul Coughing, Irresistible Bliss

* Note, Soul Coughing isn't around anymore so I've put the link to the Yahoo Music site for some info on the band.

A bit of a wide range of stuff, some current, some not and pretty much all over the map. Perhaps in future posts I'll go into what it is about each album I like. But not now. It's getting late and I gotta work tomorrow. But one more music note.

Weird Al Yankovic - I just love this guy. His latest video is on My Space. Watch it for a good laugh. And no, I don't own any Weird Al CD's.

White and Nerdy

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Christmas Spirit

Today's picture is a small school choir that was serenading me during my lunch hour this afternoon. They were raising money for the Ronald McDonald House Yorkhill Glasgow. I feel bad, I didn't give any money. But I don't get my first paycheque until Dec 29th and cash is tight so I'm trying not to feel too guilty.

I'm still very impressed that these kids can freely sing about Jesus, son of God, Saviour of the world in a shopping mall. In North America too often the PC police are forcing Christmas to become Xmas and kids can only sing about Santa, snowmen and flying reindeer.

The office Christmas Party is this Friday at the Oran Mor. I walk past this place on a daily basis as it's just 2 blocks up the street from our current flat. It's a restaurant. bar, theatre and live music venue (Ron Sexsmith played there not too long ago) that is a converted church, formerly Kelvinside Parish Church.

You have no idea how common it is for churches, beautiful churches, to be converted into restaurants, theatres, lecture halls etc. It usually comes down to the parish not being able to afford the cost of running/repairing a very aging building. I can't decide what I think of that. Architecturally speaking it's great that they are being converted for other uses rather than being torn down. But I find it sad that congregations aren't able to financially support their parish. Yet, quite literally there is a cathedral every 2 blocks or so.

What do YOU think?

Where Can A Girl Sit To Eat Her Sandwich?

The office building that I work in does not have a lunch room. It has a very wee kitchen that has a microwave, a sink, broken dishwasher and bar fridge. It's the size of a long skinny broom closet. So come lunch time where does one go to eat a sandwich?

In the summer there are many options as the office faces a lovely little park, and all along Sauchiehall there are benches. But this time of year everything is very very VERY wet (see yesterday's picture/post).

I wandered down to the Buchanan Galleries, which is the big mall in city centre, but unlike the malls in Vancouver it has no seating at all in the corridors. There is one very small area on the upper level that has a couch and 3 chairs. I completely lucked out that someone left just as I got there.

I guess I'll have to learn to eat on my feet. I can walk and chew gum at the same time so how hard can it be?

Sideways Rain

Today has been a very very wet day. And, depending on what block you are on, very windy as well. Umbrella's aren't of much when they kept blowing inside out when a sudden gust comes at you from underneath of all places. So tonight I ditched the umbrella and pulled my hood down and just relied on my Taiga to keep my upper half mostly dry. As you can see from the picture my lower half didn't do so well.

Tomorrow (Monday) is my first day of work. I'm a bit wired at the moment with anticipation. That isn't a good thing as I need to get a good night's sleep. They're being nice to me and I don't have to arrive until 9:30. But I'm looking at the weather forecast and it's kinda iffy as to if I will arrive mostly dry or not. I've got about a 20 minute walk from the underground station to get to the office so I'm hoping I don't look like a drowned rat when I walk through the door.

Speaking of weather.... initially both Brenda and I were thinking that these Glaswegians were a bit of wimps in that they were always complaining about how wet & windy it's been. We were expecting this kind of weather so couldn't understand why everyone was complaining about it. I did some digging on the BBC and it seems that although it's been warmer than normal it's been extremely wetter than normal. In fact this last November was the wettest on record since 1938. I think if we survive this autumn/winter we can handle anything.

The Living Room Tour

Why have I not heard of this concept before?

A group of musicians books tours in peoples living rooms and plays a live acoustic set to a small group of 20 - 40 people (depending on the size of the living room). Tickets are 10 pounds at the door and bring your own booze. It's an intimate venue, with lots of anecdotes and the band is actually able to connect with the audience rather than being seperated by a stage and blinded by lights. There's no overhead so 100% of ticket sales (and any CD sales as well) goes directly to the band.

So give up on doing the coffee house or brew house circuit, book your living rooms now!

The group we saw this evening is Lies Damn Lies, 2 guys on guitar and a girl on keys.

Pops this tidbit is for you: - the guy on lead guitar plays a Martin HD28V You will be proud of the fact that from the first finger-pattern he played, my ears recognized that it was a Martin and I guess correctly that it was a D28. You've raised me well.

December Rose

It was another lovely day out, sunny but a bit on the crisp side of cold. Still, no rain so that meant I had to do some walking. I decided to try and find an area I had been to once before on Hyndland Road but I had been driven there so wasn't sure which way to go. But I walked out the door with my Glasgow Pocket Map book and felt confident the day would not be wasted.

I'm still amazed by all the historic architecture everywhere. Found some nice little neighborhoods that looked very expensive. Even found a blooming rose bush, yes - a blooming rose bush IN DECEMBER (today's picture). As I was navigating the streets I'm amazed that more people don't get lost. Glasgow was NOT built following a grid pattern. Plus it also adheres to the 'lets change the name of the street every 2 blocks' rule.

Met up with Brenda and Carl in the early afternoon and we walked into city centre and grabbed some lunch at Princess Square (it's just a high end mall). All the Christmas decorations were up, the centre courtyard had a massive Christmas Tree (artificial I'm sure) and we lucked out that there was a girls school choir singing for the enjoyment of the shoppers.

Not a big fan of the tune 'Jingle Bell Rock'. Just my luck that they did it twice, complete with choreography.

Christmas Cards

I cloistered myself away in my room today to try and get all my Christmas cards written. I'm sad to say I only got about half done which means I will be doing the same tomorrow. But those I did manage to write have been dropped off at the post office so I guess they'll be going out in waves.

I really find writing that many cards quite tedious. Not boring, but I'm one of those people that can't see the point of sending off a card with just a signature in it. I need to actually write some stuff inside. I try to be witty, or funny or thoughtful and that's tough work. Plus I need to try not to repeat what I've blogged about as you'd know that already. Man, I am one tough critic. Maybe you guys aren't worth the effort....... OK, you are.

I received a very large envelope from the office today with the official letter telling me I've been hired and I start Monday. Along with it came the regular blurbs on professionalism and a CD ROM that I need to review on the company. I guess when they put the package together they didn't clue in that I've been working for the company for 10 yrs already. But it should be interesting to review the info just to see if there is anything different between the UK offices and North America. It also looks like I'll be heading out for a few courses in my first 3 months in Croydon which is just south of London.

I guess now would be an appropriate time to warn you all that once I start working I may not have all that much to blog about. That is unless you are all REALLY interested in the wonderful world of Pensions and Call Centre's. But we'll see, maybe it will be a fun office full of many hijinks and mayhem, but I doubt it. However, I will attempt to keep up with my picture of the day. Or maybe I'll revert to CD & Movie reviews or cultural observations of the day. I'll have to think about it.

Right, I forgot to mention today's picture. That's me back in 1969 and in closer inspection of the photo I can see that even back then I had a thing for red shoes.

Let the jokes begin....

Modern Architecture

Today was all about seeing the new Glasgow. I hopped the SPT to Cessnock station and walked to the Science Centre to start the day.

It looks like something from a Lunar Base Camp. It was a beautiful clear day with lots of sun. The buildings are metal so I had fun playing with the reflections.

Another building that compliments the Science Centres is the SECC - Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre or the Armadillo as it's nicknamed.



When I was done with the Science Centre (I did catch an IMAX film in 3D no less for a bit of a break) I crossed the River Clyde and just started walking. There is an extensive walking/cycle trail that follows the river for approx 70 KM. It reminded me very much of the seawall in Vancouver. Most of the building down on the riverfront is very modern in contrast with the Victorian architecture in city centre.

Also all along the river are numerous vehicle and pedestrian bridges. I have seen book in the tourist shops on the bridges of the River Clyde. In time I'll look up the info then I'll properly be able to label the photos.

Today (or this week really) has been about taking lots of pictures and playing with the camera. I'm trying to recognize good lighting when I see it or interesting compositions. Lastly, it's about following through when I hear that little voice in my head that says: "That might make an interesting shot".

For those that don't know, I post all my pictures (well most of them, I don't post the awful ones) on Flickr. So just click on the link and that will take you to them. Feel free to leave comments on them as well. I'm always interested in what other people have to say.

So that's where that is....

More exploring today. I'm starting to finally figure out the city and get my bearings. I went to St Enoch Square today to check out the wee Christmas Market there and take a look around.

The first week I arrived in Glasgow I went to a concert at The Arches and to get there took the Underground to St Enoch Station. But of course it was at night and in the dark so I had no visual references to see where I was. Today I saw.

I keep forgetting that maps can be really misleading in terms of distance. Something will look far away, but when I walk there it only takes 15 min or half an hour. I got there via the underground but really I could have walked, it just would have taken longer. Had I not met Brenda and Carl for lunch I would have done just that as it was such a nice sunny day (well most of the day). But by the time I left the restaurant I knew I had limited sunlight as it starts to get dark around 4PM so I hopped the SPT.

If the weather is nice tomorrow I want to do some more exploring on the other side of the River Clyde. Who knows what adventures lurk over there. I'm hoping to find the Glasgow Science Centre to take some pictures of the exterior.

Happy Feet

Today's post is dedicated to Josh Gemmell.

At the suggestion of a friend I headed off to the Dennistoun area along Duke Street. My mission... to take pictures. I felt bad that I'd been slacking on that area for a while so I made up for it today. The sky was ever changing between black clouds, rain, brilliant sun and even a rainbow. I wandered through many different architectural styles and even came across a pink elephant or 3.

Stopped in at the Tapa Coffee & Bake House for a cup of tea and a bite to eat. Once I placed my order, sat down and looked out the window the rain started so my timing was perfect. I must go back there as the cup of tea I had was wonderful and I'd like to purchase some for my home brewing pleasure but can't remember the name of it.

On my way back I stopped in at the GOMA and walked through all the galleries as last time I was there I only managed the main floor. When I was done the sky was already darkened and the Christmas lights were on. Another opportunity to take a night shot. I'm really happy with the results.

Feel free to check out the photos I took today (and every day) on my Flickr page.

As to the Happy Feet reference? I'm sure my feet will be anything but come tomorrow morning. Oh well, I need to get my Christmas cards done anyway.

Simon - thanks for the suggestions, it was a great day!

Oh and for those that haven't heard yet - I got the call from the office this afternoon. I start work Monday December 11th.

Children's Wear

I really didn't think shopping for clothes would be such a challenge. I know the UK sizing is a bit different but everything here is huge on me, and I'm not a skinny girl.

I'm always on the look out for warm sweaters (or jumpers as they're called here). I picked up a warm wool turtleneck from Mango in the House of Fraser that was an XS (extra small for you guys out there) and it fits big. Socks, well I have UK size 3 feet so I know I need to get those in the children's department. But here's the best purchase...



I picked up a V-Neck sweater & T-shirt from the boys department in Next sized 'age 11/12' and it's still big. The size 'age 8/9 fit me in the body but the sleeves were too short.

I am smaller than a Scottish 11 year old boy.

If Everyone Had A Cat There Would Be No War

The one thing that I'm missing more and more is my cats. This one is Staccato



And this one is Ginger

I know that sounds lame and all, but they were my family as I lived alone - OK that sounds even more sad.

They would greet me at the door when I got home from a hard days work and they provided companionship. Nothing cheers you up more when you're feeling blue than having a warm furry purring cat rubbing her head on your hand asking for a pet. Spending the days by myself I really miss having a cat to cuddle with.

My cats are now living with my parents and have adjusted just fine. This picture is of my Dad with Staccato.

She's a bit 'different' in that she goes just squirrely when the mobile rings. It must have something to do with the tonal frequency but it's fun to have her crawl all over you purring and yowling as the phone is ringing.

She also likes the sound of voices singing. I can remember a few years ago my friend Paul and I were doing some recording in my apartment and in the middle of this one tune she walked into the room where we were and started meowing with us. After 3 failed attempts at trying to finish the tune I finally had to lock her in the storage room until we were done.

Not much to report today (thus the reason for talking about my cats).

Went into city centre to finish up purchasing Christmas cards. I need to work on those this week and then get them in the mail. I do believe this will be the first year I've ever mailed cards before February. Seriously, that's usually when I would get around to sending them out. So this will be a huge improvement. But they aren't in the mail yet, so if you don't get your card before Christmas then check your mail box around February.

How many days 'till Christmas?!?!?!

I can't believe it's December already!

The big discussion around the dinner table tonight was plans for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I'm feeling a bit conflicted about the whole thing. I come from a very small family (I'm an only child) so I don't have a strong "family tradition" as it's always just been the 3 of us.

I guess the only tradition I've come to have is that of being an orphan. When I moved to Vancouver I was on my own so I would be invited to various friends homes to celebrate the holidays with their family. It would be nice to extend that invitation out here only for me to be on the hosting side of things for a change. But so far the only orphan I've met (Heather) is flying home to be with her family for Christmas so I'll need to find some more. I'll have to keep my eyes open.

The other weird thing is this will be the first time in I don't know how many years that I'm not involved singing for the Christmas Eve service. I have this friend Paul that I would collaborate with and we'd always try to pick some obscure tune to do (Dave Matthews - A Christmas Song, Joni Mitchell - River, Gordon Lightfoot - A Winter's Night). The more unknown the better and preferably not typical churchy sound. I think only once we did an actual Christmas Carol - I Heard The Bells on Christmas Day, but of course it was a 'different' arrangement by Pedro The Lion. I always loved harmonizing with Paul as we blended so wonderfully AND he was/is such an amazing guitarist (and mandolin & fiddle).

Paul - if you're reading this, I miss you :>(

Anyone know of an acoustic guitar player with a nice tenor voice looking to work with a folky alto vocalist?

Anyone? Bueller? Anyone?