The Torch Tower in Dubai Torched!

When I read that it was in the Dubai Marina, I read the article. and the minute I saw the article I knew which tower it was, and where it was located in the Dubai Marina. One of the rare places you can take a stroll in Dubai is along the Dubai Marina, at least in the winter months, where it's quite pleasant.

The last time I visited my Lebanese hubby in Dubai, while he worked during the day, I would sometimes wander to the Dubai Marina for lunch at the Rupee room. I remember the time I ordered the spicy eggplant curry. The waiter tells me it's pretty spicy hot, I tell him bring it on.  Well he brings me my meal and I notice that all the waiters, are all standing in a line watching me take my first bite.  As if to say "Watch the white woman with the red hair, she's going to be calling for water, or to have her dish changed". Three of them had a water pitcher in their hand. Their eggplant curry was divine. Just hot enough, and when it got a bit too hot, I'd take a bite of rice to cool down my mouth. After I'd eaten 3-4 bites and not even touched my water, I watched them all disperse. 

After my lunch, I'd sit in the Dubai Marina on one of the benches, and watch the people go buy. From the ex-pat Brits, to the Emiratis, and every nationality in between. There was a fair amount of Filipinos and east Asians working in the food industry and the Marina walk is scattered with restaurants and cafes, both local endeavours and chains like Johnny Rockets.

I've also been known to sketch, while I was in Dubai and the only building I sketched while sitting in the Dubai Marina, was the Torch tower.

Help my friend out if you can

A friend of mine is going through a rough time.   She says:

"I've run into financial difficulty after being rejected (again) from CSST and finding myself unable to work a regular 9-5 due to my physical health limitations.

That being said - I do have a lot of skill as a photographer and a lot of art available for sale!

If you are looking for photography services or art please look though the albums to see what is available (feel free to ask for custom orders as well)

There is also a GO FUND ME campaign as well if you prefer to go though that : http://www.gofundme.com/c0n9ak

If you are unable to help out financially please share both this event and the gofundme

I can accept payments in cash, cheque, paypal, credit card or e-transfer

I appreciate all the help!"

Far less angry

This is a general thing. Not how I feel after driving in rush hour in DDO and Pierrefonds. Don't even get me started on the traffic today.

However what I mean is that in general since I made a conscious effort to not get angry at things I have no control over, I'm far less angry. I've also made peace with events from my past, and I'm thinking about blogging about them. Putting it out in the open.  The bullying,  the hurtful things that happened.

At the end of my last therapy session, my therapist said he learned more about me that day then in the 4 prior years. He also said that I am incredibly well adjusted knowing all this. 

So I am far less angry overall. I still blow up and boil over and get all bent out of shape over the most stupid things, but I no longer really dwell.  This has affected the music I listen to.  I've been listening to far less angry music. I still love NIN and Rage against the Machine, but the past couple of weeks, if not even months, I've been heavily into the doors, and Riders on the storm.   I just get lost in the music. You'd think Id be bored of it... but most days no..

I have cool memories associated with this song from various decades too. I mean there was my decadent late teens, and then there was my late 20's. I remember driving down the 40 into a ginormous harvest moon, probably going between 160-180 with a friend in his green Beretta.  I associate it with the movie "no one gets out of here alive" that I saw years after I read the book. 

Other songs that lately I must listen to, Moby Porcelain. I hadn't listened to that in easily 10 years, add some  Coldplay, Syntax, and Jesus Jones and that's what mostly is lighting me up.

On a completely unrelated subject, today I ended up talking with one of the hardware guys who is native of Lebanon but hasn't visited in over 20 years.  We talked about the places in Lebanon I'd visited, the places I'd gone in Syria and Jordan, about the geopolitical situation, the people of the middle east, including him tossing the odd arab word, many of whom I would instantly recognize. He told me by the time we finished our conversation that I was very incredibly well informed on the middle east. I was thinking it was mostly through absorbing though my Lebanese hubby's eyes.  But then I realized that the comment I made about ISIS/ISIL today was definitely an opinion I'd formed alone. I think I commented that this group was just a more backwards form of Wahhabism. .

I've hated my lenovo laptop since I got it

I've been wanting to reformat it and start fresh. After being forwarded this article by a friend who knows I have a Lenovo laptop, I'm definitely REFORMATTING it tonight.

I've hardly used it for surfing the web, mostly I've used it as a television.

Well tonight, it's getting a version of Windows 7, and I will only be installing drivers, not even the software accompanying drivers.

Addiction!

This article makes so much sense. 

Not sure I posted the first article a few weeks back that questions the way we handle drug addiction and also the "War on drugs". Making those behaviours punishable by law, when the only thing the person is doing is drugging themselves is useless in terms of prevention.

This makes me rethink my complete alcohol denial and maybe at least try to drink once responsibly before deciding for good that I should continue never drinking.

My only accomplishment

I made potato and chickpea curry today while I stayed home and felt miserable.  The only cutting was for the potatoes and onions. This is really easy dish to make when not feeling well. Put tons of cayenne in it too so my stomach handles all the stupid muscle relaxants I've been taking for my back.

Again with the twingie

Last night and this morning my back is twingie again but with a twist. Now I have shooting pain from the twingie part of my back down my left leg. After last year where I decided a little back ache wouldn't stop me from working and I was in bed more then a week, I'm taking it easy. Today I'm staying home. Took 2 muscle relaxants, which I should have taken last night before bed,  and going to lie down part of the day. Not sure why it's my left leg. I drive with my right leg...

Panasonic ESED90P Ladies Wet and Dry Epilator/Shaver

I ordered it on Amazon on February 3rd and it arrived on February the 13th. Given they had none in stock and had no clue when they would have stock, I was pretty pleased with it's timely arrival.

My main reason for buying it is that I have been getting nasty rashes shaving. Usually days 2-3-4 after shaving. It was suggested that I may be less prone to rashes if I were to use an electric shaver.

So after a month of checking out various models, I opted for the Panasonic ESE090P. I wasn't here on Friday when it arrived, so I opened the box on Sunday dinner time, after I got home.

I decided to try it around 11pm after spending time on Skype with my buddy in Otttawa. It was easy to use, but 30 minutes after I was finished both legs were rashed. Thankfully, not touching them at all or reacting to the itching meant that this morning both legs looked fine, rash gone, and it's a close shave.

So this might actually work for me. As the name implies you can use the shaver in the shower, but I doubt I'll ever do that in the 3 showers I take a year. The trauma of taking a shower is enough to make me inept to shave. For those who don't know me, I do bathe daily. I just don't like showers, or having water fall on me. I also don't like being out in the rain much. It's a texture/tactile issue. I'm fine being immersed in water, moreso if the water is the right temperature.

Beautiful Sunny day

Today was a beautiful sunny day. I left the townships around 3:15, gassed at the Petro-T in Drummondville, and drove straight home. The 55's passing lane did have a bit of snow in some parts of the left most side, but the  right lane was clear. The 20 was clear the whole way as was the 30. A bit of wind and drifting snow in some areas but nothing compared to my drive down.

I arrived home at 5:30, and pulled straight in the garage. Toby did not say meow the entire trip home. He slept, with his face near the exit of the cage. I always put it so that he can see me and he knows I'm with him.  He was found sleeping earlier in his usual spot at this time in the evening. Jethro and Pixie greeted him, Ziva hissed, sniffed him and told him he smelled funny. Females!

I didn't mention that I went to Rockaberry on Sources, on Wednesday night. I went to meet a new POF guy. I hope, the first and the only for 2015.  This new one messaged me the Wednesday before, and I responded the morning before leaving for my interviews at ETS downtown. We exchanged around 15 emails that day, starting with silly banter and ending with much deeper and intellectual topics. By the end I was actually wanting to meet him. Usually it takes me a week or two online to feel out someone. However what kept me from the impulsivity was my sore back.  It wasn't well enough before Wednesday to attempt meeting anyone.

We met around 7pm, I decided at 9:30 to put a 10pm end to the meeting otherwise we would have talked all night. I got a good feeling, like this one might be a friend for a very long time. He actually speaks my language.  Time will tell as is usual with such things.We're still exchanging emails but nothing like the frenzy of the first day.

My back is still a bit stiff but I can still bounce around a room, and that is a good thing. My back stays stiff too if I don't move around enough. Another few days and it should be fine. Just have to make sure not to lift much this week at work.

Fifty shades of Unimpressed

You have to be living under a rock to not have heard about the book and now the movie "50 shades of Grey".   I don't tend to buy into the hype, and was never particularly tempted to read 50 shades of grey and the likelihood I see it in the movie theatre, given that I'm already not a fan of going to the cinema is probably nil. I think the last movie I saw in the theatre was the last "Sex and the City movie". It was with my ex husband, and it was at the Colloseum in Kirkland off Chemin Ste Marie.

Sadly lately the media, including social media is saturated with this drivel. I hear the book is extremely poorly written, and that while it posses as erotic and bdsm, really, it's nothing more then glorified abuse. Most practitioners of BDSM will tell you that the relationship between the main 2 characters is unhealthy.  It's sad that hordes of women have bought into this garbage. We already don't have enough issues with rape and consent that some yahoo makes it sound all erotic.

There is really nothing erotic about being raped.  I know there are women who like to fantasize about rape, but trust me, the real thing... well... it kills part of you inside.

So I'm 50 shades of unimpressed with society in general . It's hard to know who to trust, and who is telling the truth. Having more access to information doesn't seem to make people smarter, it seems to permit to information peddlers to convince people that their information is the truth.

I know I live in a 'democratic" society where I think I have freedom. {Well at least there is freedom of what to think inside my head.. That must count for something? }  I can run up and down the street yelling how much Steven Harper is a moron, and I won't get arrested. At worst my neighbours will call the police and I will get a nuisance ticket.

But at the same time I know that I'm only free in so far as I am a good little citizen.  50 shades of unimpressed with the government, the health care system, workers comp {CSST in Quebec}, and everything in between.

I'm a Crazy Canuck

Thursday night despite the fact it was still snowing I decided to drive down to my friends place in the townships. On a good day, with clear roads it has taken me as little as 2 hours.  It would not be that way this time.  It took me 45 minutes to make it to the Petro-T in Kahnawake.  That was a sign of things to come.

The 30 was drive-able,  I even passed a snow removal truck which didn't much difference to be honest. I made it to the 20 and it wasn't so bad except people were mostly going between 60-70km/hr. I could not see myself driving holding my steering for dear life 4 hours. That made me anxious. So i grabbed my courage and barrelled down the highway at times as fast as 105. There were areas where the wind and drifting snow made the visibility almost nil and i did slow to 70ish at times.

The 55 was good around Drummondville but as I got deeper into the Townships the road became more covered especially after i passed the snow removal truck. The last 20 clics on the 55 were the hardest, had hard time finding the road. Of course the last bit on the country road i was going 50 and at times I wasn't sure where the road was. Fun  times.

It took me 2 hours 45 minutes holding my steering with a death grip. But I made it in one piece. Toby was mostly good on the way down and he got to spend time with the dog.

Nice to see I'm not the only women who really finds receiving unsolicited dick photos unpleasant....

Great article with video about the subject.  I've ranted about this a few times before but this article hits it on the head.

Saudi Historian needs a pole up his.....

Some buffoon Saudi historian claims women drive in other countries, because WE DON'T CARE IF WE GET RAPED. 

I'd love to know where he gained this knowledge? Has he traveled to other countries and raped women and then interview them to know how they felt? If he did, he's a bad Saudi, and a bad Muslim, he shouldn't be looking never mind touching women who he isn't married to or related to.  And if he didn't then WHAT the fuck does  he know about women in other countries?

When he was made fun in the interview, he added that Saudi Arabia should hire foreign women drivers to drive their women?  Really? Because the law in Saudi Arabia differentiates between local women and foreign women?  Last I checked if you are ANY FEMALE caught driving in Saudi Arabia, there will be penalties. I'm guessing if you're a foreigner, you will be fined and deported.

I have to feel sorry for Saudi women stuck with neanderthals like this buffoon.  I have hope that one day our Saudi sisters will be allowed to drive their cars, without the risk of rape....

I mean you'd think if they fear rape so much they would JAIL ALL THE MEN. After all it's MEN who rape women.

Beck rocks

Yep. This picture does say it all.  I'm impressed with Beck who was classy and humble and really he rocks!

Shirley Manson of Garbage was very unimpressed with Kanye

Always been a big fan of Beck, and I guess it's time I check out the album for which he got Grammy.

What are the urban developers in DDO really thinking?

There are so few north-south streets in the west island that goes between highway 40 and Gouin and some yahoo in DDO, thought that one of the few streets that do, should be single lane 40km per hour!!!

Don't know what he has been smoking, but ever since the line was painted to mark where one could no longer drive and not clearing the snow on the side of the road, Sunnybrooke  BOULEVARD has been jammed up between 7:30-8:30AM and between 4-6pm daily. When I say jammed up, bumper to bumper traffic. I've been stuck on Sunnybrooke blvd longer then 30 fucking minutes. The damn BOULEVARD is 2.2km long and should take no more then 5 minutes to drive from one end to the other, even if you have to wait for the light at Hyman, and for the bike path in summer.

If I had a choice I would NEVER use Sunnybrooke BOULEVARD, but sadly I work on St Regis, and really the best way to get home is by taking Gouin to Pierrefonds blvd. The only way to get from St Regis to Gouin is by taking Sunnybrooke.

But some Yahoo from DDO thinks that I should maybe get on the highway for one exit and then go down Sources blvd? So I drive further out of the way?  Besides most mornings Sources is backed up to Hyman, or even Sunnydale.  I've taken to zigzagging through DDO in the morning and getting to Sunnybrooke at Kingsley and still some mornings I spend 20 minutes on Sunnybrooke.

Also if they didn't want Sunnybrooke BOULEVARD to be used by so much traffic, they perhaps having it connect to an entrance to the highway  via St Regis wasn't the best idea either

I spent most of my commute time stuck in non-moving traffic on both Sunnybrooke and St Regis and it's really frustrating.

And to those unclear on the meaning of the word Boulevard, it means a LARGE road.  If you don't want people to use it call it a street or an avenue.  Not a boulvard.


/RANT OFF

"She was gagging for it? "

Some top lawyer in the UK seems to think that if you're drunk you're consenting.  Perhaps someone should spike his drink with some date rape drug, shove a stick up his ass and then tell him he was "gagging for it" since he was drunk and consenting.

Anyone can be raped, that's the reality. You really think because you're a male you will never get raped? Let someone toss you in jail for a few weeks and come back to tell me that you had sex willingly with another man in those conditions.

It pisses me off to no end when a male with some amount of power goes off and says things like "She was gagging for it". I bet you he probably also feels that there was no child abuse at the BBC, and children make up stories about abuse.... Oh and if they were drugged they were probably "gagging for it".

Stupid back

I must have slipped and twisted by back funny on Thursday when I walked to ETS from the train station because Friday morning it was locked.

It's now Monday, I've spent all week-end doing nothing much, putting tiger balm on my back and taking the crappy muscle relaxant that upsets the belly but should help the back.  Still have stiff back this morning.

Sucks. I have no idea what I did to the stupid thing.

First shots with the point and shoot.

On the way back from doing interviews at ETS, since I had 20 minutes to kill before the train, I stopped and payed a visit to m y favourite "place of worship" so to speak

Wooden statue of Mary

Basilique Marie Reine du Monde

I walked to the location in the church when the wooden depiction of Mary is found and I sat in quiet reflection for about 10 minutes.

Seriously?

So the POF guy from MAY last year resurfaced again today, with a text message, trying to engage me. Trying to get a reaction out of me. I ain't going to react, other then to rant here about what a fucking moron he is.  I told him nicely I didn't want to see him again end of May 2014. You'd think he'd have fucking moved on.... He's verging on stalker status.It's the 4th time he contacts me since.

He's another one who doesn't seem to learn that when you insult someone in a drunken stupor, you may not remember tomorrow but the other party does, and doesn't want to cross any bridge with you ever again. To wit, a blog post aimed at another clueless male.

Post script about vaccines

Great article from a doctor about why you should vaccinate your children.

When my youngest was 8-9 months several people where their dad worked got the measles.  Concerned I spoke to my pediatrician who vaccinated her at 9 months. Of course that vaccine was just enough to protect her to 15 months when she was scheduled to receive the MMR.

My youngest never got the measles thankfully. 

Take public transport they say

I'm going to interview students  at ETS today, so I decided to take the commuter train. 

In the past when I arrive around 9ish there is no parking soI figured I'd arrive earlier and get parking in one of the lots.  But no. They were already full at 8:15!!!!!!!! 

I had to park on the street in front of the IGA. Thankfully I chose to go early so at least I was able to park.  There needs to be more parking if they want more people to use public transport.

Got myself a point and shoot

Sony DSC-W830

I've been not wanting to take 2-5lbs of camera equipment everywhere I go, so I figured 2015 was the year I'd get myself a little tiny point and shoot. It's very tiny. Smaller then my android.  List price on SO\ony Canada website is $130 currently, got it for $115 taxes included at Canada Computers. Ordered two more batteries and a charger on Amazon, the total will cost me $20. Battery for this camera is rated for about 100 minutes, want to make sure I don't run out of battery. 

I've taken a few cat photos with it and happy. It does so much better then my android in poor lighting, which is good considering I hate using a flash, though even without flash the camera will flash red to get focus. 

I chose the Sony because I have a similar model at work and like it a lot. It's probably a little bigger then this one but not by much and takes good photos for my needs at work. Of course I'm just a Sony groupie, I just love the Sony colours. 

Oh and I just remembered I have 2 tripods that will work for this camera, one is tiny and will hold it, the other was supposed to be one that can be attached to anything but would not hold up a dSLR, but will hold up this tiny point and shoot, no problems. 

Vaccinations

It's fairly common these days to find parents who think vaccinations are bad for their children and refuse to get them vaccinated.

I'm from a different group of people who feel vaccinations are important. My mom was traumatized by the number of children she saw that caught paralytic polio. Canada was one of the nations the hardest hit by this disease, especially between 1927 and 1953. Canada was also one of the first countries to successfully eliminate Polio after the introduction of the salk vaccine in 1955 and the Sabin oral vaccine in 1962.

There was an outbreak in the years before my birth in 1962 that scarred my mom for life. The number of children she saw remain handicapped made sure that she was going to have me vaccinated and convince me that the better option is to have my children vaccinated.

Sadly I did end up getting the measles, really badly, and I suspect the reason my eyes adjust so poorly to light was due to this. I spent 1 month in the dark when I had the measles. They were terrified I'd go blind.  The measles vaccination was offered to me at school, but on the day it was given, I had a cold, which wasn't a cold, but symptoms of the measles. The vaccination came too late for me.

I also got the mumps at 10, and the side effect of that is that I have had motion sickness since. Before the mumps I could ride in cars and even swing on a swing. After the mumps, I turn green in anything with a bit of motion. I've never been able to go on rides in amusements park since the mumps.

The chicken pox is the only childhood disease I got that did not seem to leave me with negative side effects, with the exception of a few scars from scratching.

Here's an interesting article written by a 70's kid who's mom thought it was healthier to not receive any vaccinations.

In 2007 when I travelled to the middle-east I got a plethora of vaccinations.  I got vaccinated against polio, tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis, as well as Hep A, Heb B, typhoid, cholera, and travellers diarrhea.  The only vaccination I never got is one against rubella. However they don't make that vaccine alone, it's usually along with mumps and measles. Since I had the other two, they couldn't vaccinate me against it.

The only vaccination I do not get these days is the flu vaccination, because I've had it once and reacted really poorly to the vaccine itself. However if I got older and more prone to catching the flu, I'd probably go back to getting a yearly shot

Fair winds and following seas

My daughter is starting a sail today and this phrase from the US navy came to mind. I had to look it up didn't remember it exactly  but I knew it meant good luck.

While it is associated with the US navy this phrase which is really two quotes to make a nautical wish of good luck,.  "fair winds" generally means good luck in a journey  and "following seas" implies the movement of the water, the waves, and the surface, correspond with the movement of the tide.Which means the boat won't pound into the wave.

For some reason using this phrase brings tears to my eyes this morning.  Obviously still watch way too much NCIS.

There is a blanket of snow here in Montreal this morning. My friend in Ireland was expecting snow yesterday and it's snowing in Paris. That giant storm that wasn't as bad as predicted on the East cost the past week is still dumping in Europe. The storm that keeps giving... 

My daughter decorates her living space with heavy Walmart artichokes

One of the items my eldest daughter is pleased with is this bigger then life artichoke that she picked up at Walmart. For one it's so heavy that her cat Loche won't toss it on the floor. That is always a bonus when adding accents to a room.  I wonder how she likes her sewing machine, a Janome SUV1108.

Last year I got from the President's choice grocery store, a down vest, from their Joe Fresh line. It was black and down filled, and I loved it so much I bought this years model in olive green.

I also got one for a friend in Olive green and she loves it too, so ended up getting the last men's for my buddy in Ireland. Most of this winter, he's been complaining about how he just doesn't seem to be able to warm up. Makes sense it's always damp in Ireland and that is bone chilling. I mailed the package last Thursday and it got to him today.  He called it a body warmer :)  He says it fits perfectly and was going to wear it today to ride to Dublin.  I'm hoping it keeps him as warm as it keeps us.

My dentist changed receptionist, what after 20 years, and the new ones don't know me very well, so I never got my reminder cal at work, forgot completely I had an appointment. Felt like a heel. But I have poor memory for appointments. Always have. Need reminding.

Sunrise with rainbow effect

But the rainbow doesnt really show on photo.

 

Skyped with my eldest daughter last night for about 2 hours. I was happy especially since she sails on Friday until late March. So got to talk to her for a bit.  

Still loving my Roots Barron Canyon 4 person tent

I did a review of my tent back in September 2013, when I'd only had it half a season. In 2014 it was the only tent I used. It went with me around Cape Breton, and survived several very windy spots, including Corney Brooke Campsite along the gulf side, and Meat Cove on top of a cliff Atlantic side. It survived both Fundy National Park and Murray beach provincial park in New Brunswick.

Corney Brook. Cape Breton Highlands Provincial Park, Nova Scotia, June 4, 2014

Meat Cove Nova Scotia, June 6th, 2014

The tiny orange spot is tent at Meat Cove Nova Scotia, June 2014

Murray Beach Provincial Park, New Brunswick, June 12, 2014. Tiny orange spot is tent!

Rideau River Provincial Park, Ontario, August 2014

Lac Vert, Quebec,  Labour Day week-end 2014 after torrential rainfall

It's also been to Reserve Faunique Portneuf in May of 2014, a festival in late June at Whispering Pines in Ontario, and another one in August.  Other then that it's been to Rideau River Provincial Park also in Ontario, as well as in the Gatineau region of Quebec to a wilderness camping-canoe trip.  I've used it alone, with my daughter, with a friend and with 2 friends.   The alcove has been used several times by my friends Husky who loved fact she can just scoot in and out since there is no floor.

I've seen no signs of degradation, and looking forward to using it a lot in the 2015 camping season, hopefully as early as April. It's a 3 season tent and the inside of the fly is made of reflective material that seems awesome to keep the heat in. I've never been cold in this tent, alone or with others.

The last time I used it, I had to hang it on the clothes line for a day or two to let it air out and dry. I really didn't feel like putting it up in my yard. It does fine on the clothes line, by putting the fly  on one part of the line and the tent further down. Both were good to put away in the bag until spring. 

My kitten is 9 months old

Toby is still incredibly cute. Hes also taken to grooming Pixie who has been having issues the past few years due to his weight. Pixie is loving the attention and has bonded with Toby much faster then he did with Ziva or Jethro. 

I'll finish bathing you later, it's nap time.

Sorry I almost fell off the couch.

Stay still I can't lick your ear properly

I was sleeping before you came out with your camera

Look it's  stretch Armstrong!

Syria's Spotty Future

Syria's Spotty Future -  Pastel

This is one of a series of pastels I did with spots. This one I finished in June 2011. I name it Syria's Spotty future.  Considering it's 3 1/2 years later

The other 2 pastels I did in the same time frame, inspired by Syria's Arab spring. Also finished in June of 2011, after which I haven't really drawn.

Syrian women watching the sunset on another brutal day

Mosque in Damascus under a blood red sky

New funky sarongs

Found a few more sarongs at value village in the past few weeks. These are the prettiest ones.

The pink one was totally new, never even been washed. Was also $5.99, the most expensive 2nd hand sarong that I picked up. 

Love the pretty design on this one

Love the colours of this one

Not a big fan of Royalty

However I do have to give credit to Queen Elizabeth II, she has chutzpah!  This article is well worth the read.

This time it's true.....

Back in 2011, I likened the head of Saudi Arabia to Schrodinger's cat.

Today he's really dead. Here's a summary of his life.

While KSA is still the most backwards country in the world, where women still can't drive, he "apparently" tried to slowly bring his country into the 21st century. May he RIP.

First dress of 2015

Burda 8510 with a Digital print Rayon

Burda 8510

Gullible yes, stooopid, no!

Was reading something the other day and I had an AHA moment.

1) I shouldn't be reading random things on the internet in the middle of the night.[Well other then silly little articles about sex. Those are always fun]

2) I should always verify what I read with reputable sources. Though sometimes reputable sources don't talk about certain things. However if all articles I find on a subject are from some obscure papers, and all based on one another... sounds like ... well.. bs.

3) If it makes me really think WTF, then I should investigate more, because it's likely the rantings of a not all here individual. I've had people in my life that were not always centered in reality.

4) There are a lot of deranged individuals with really strange agenda's. Including heads of states.

Failed relationships

Beautiful sunrise

All I could think was WTF?

It's the 2nd or third night in a row that fall asleep around 10sh and wake up around 2ish. ANd then have a phenomenally hard time getting back to sleep.

I did read some between 2 and 3 AM this morning, and I'm not sure how I stumbled upon the 9th circle group but if any of what I read is true... then.. wtf. 

Sometimes I wonder how much of the news that we are exposed to is real and how much is fabricated. I wonder about Charlie Heddo for instance. Sounds like a ploy to get rid of more of our individual freedoms.

Anyways here is a link to an article I found, and what makes me believe it's true is that it does refer to incidents I have heard about. Of course the best way to make people believe what you write is sprinkle it with half truths.

I dunno what to think but whether imagine or real it's very CREEPY!

I wonder what my dad would think. Sadly he's not around anymore for me to ask.

A Syrian Story.

Is a poignant short film by my 2nd husband. Check it out here. It has been shown at many film festivals and is still being chosen for more.

I don't blog about Syria anymore, but the Syrian people are still in my heart. It's horrible that it's going on almost 4 years later. It's horrible that the world not only watches by but different countries provide the arms for the different terrorist factions. Make no mistakes the average Syrian wants nothing to do with ISIS or Al-Queda, or  having a muslim state.  The average Syrian just wants a country where his children can grow in peace without fear for having an opinion that is different from it's ruler.

Awesome week-end

Wonderful week-end spend in the company of my friends from Kingsbury. I generally have a great time when I spend it with them and this time was no exception. We wandered around several thrift shops, where I found some more silk scarves. We found some cool lingerie that fit my friend.

It sucks that clothes made for more voluptuous women assume they want to hide their curves. Sometimes a voluptuous woman wants to show off her beautiful assets and it sucks that no one seems to cater to that.  I tend to like mideval clothing on rubinesque women because it is made to make them look pretty as opposed to hiding them under tents or very conservative clothing.

We also went for a walk in Bois de Liesse with husky, who just had a blast. She got to meet a whole bunch of friendly dogs, along our walk, and I will do fine having my own husky when I move to Cape Breton.

My friend also made some awesome jerk. I found it perfect but it was a bit hot for some of those who ate it. My friend was not impressed, and found it a fail, but I loved it. Having 3 lunches with it this week. YUMMY!

Salon Amour et Seduction

Was the first time i went to Le Salon de L'Amour et Seduction and it maybe the last time. So many of the booths had little to do with the subject.

One of the first booths upon arrival was POTS and PANS. Like  WTF? ??? There was 2 different booths dedicated to bamboo pillows. Then half a dozen booths trying to sell 'erotic vacations'. and nudist clubs. That's a real waste of space. Other then the fact that all performers also had booths. Which left not so many booths to sell lingerie and sex toys. You would think the bigger sex shops in Montreal would have had a booth but they didn't.


Even some of the booths with toys didn't even have demo models and boxes were sealed. So can't tell what you're buying. Some of the booths with lingerie & corsets were just thieves. We saw a sexy dress there for $60 and we found the same thing at La Vie en Rose l'entrepot, for $20 plus an extra 40% off. So that boutique went to all local stores bought at cheap prices and resold for lots of money.

That leads me to think that the prices for the booths are especially steep.  We figured we would have had a better time and seen more cool new stuff if we had gone to three big well known sex shops around Montreal.  I'm not going back ever again to this Salon....

Hot and saucy

 

Lately with my lunch I've been having hot sauce. At home I have a bottle of Franks but I saw this one at a good price at Maxi and decided to give it a chance.   Does not burn much in your mouth, but afterwards you feel nice and warm. It has a nice taste, unlike, say Tabasco, which is icky tasting... 

I've been eating this hot sauce with my Protein Power Goddess bowl. YUMMY!

 

I was not crowned today...

It was just a fitting. Spent an hour in the dentist chair and his assistant kept using me to put tools on for dentist to then use later, but she but them too close to my neck and that seems to trigger in me the urge to want to hit her. Thankfully I didn't :)

I usually take Decarie blvd to NDG avenue, then down Westmount blvd to Lansdowne, then Sherbrooke to Mount Pleasant And then it's the search for parking up it or down Elm.

View down Lansdowne between Cote St Antoine and Sherbrooke Street West.

Enjoying the new Shampoo.

I picked up some new shampoo to help with my itchy dry winter scalp. I mean I already only wash my hair twice a week, because of how dry my scalp gets. This is not new. Until I was 5 my mom only washed my hair once a week for the same reason and twice a year I'd get an oil treatment.

The shampoo I picked up Jason Tea Tree Shampoo smells nice, feels nice when I use it, and it does remove the itchies. Bonus, I talked about my right ear that has seborrhoeic eczema. Well one wash of the ears at the same time as I shampoo scalp and it's gone.  Will be washing the outside of my ears with the shampoo the rest of the winter.  Between that and Noxzema, my ear is happy!

I also got the conditioner. Smells just as nice and makes my hair nice and manageable.

Cold wind blowing on....

Some might recognize a song by the Tragically Hip in that title. 

-27C plus the wind. So cold it was all hazy out this morning

Toby can't make up his mind!

So got the last 2 tarot decks last night. The Crystal vision Tarot and the Tarot of the Celtic fairies,  along with Crowley's Thoth book.So everything arrived within 10 days

.Toby seems to like the two that start with Crys.....

Girls, Girls, Girls

Nope not talking about the Motley Crue Song.

I've been watching Girls for a while now. At first it was like watching a train wreck but I couldn't help myself. Mostly because I didn't want to see how stupid one can be as a 20 something female in a large city. I was not much better at that age.

I like the TV show Girls even more after knowing it is written by a 20-something woman, Lena Dunham, for whom I have a lot of admiration.

It sucks what when someone is as outspoken as she is that the backlash is phenomenal. It's like they want to silence her. Interesting article I read this morning about Lena Denham.   I will be hunting down her book. Dunno if my local library will have it or if I'll have to buy it, but I want to read it.

Hate speech comes in all forms.  It amazes me the backlash against a young articulate woman, but EVERYONE Is CHARLIE, and that's mostly hate speech.

Just sayin....

He sits with the decks

Toby sits surrounded by my new tarot cards. In the wooden box, mini deck tarot of the pagan cats. Behind it the Crysalis Tarot, The blue box is the Silver Witchcraft and the box in front to the right is the Mystic Dreamer Tarot. 

 Ultimately my cards always have cat energies. I tend to not let anyone else touch my cards, especially not the deck I use for reading. But my cats always sit on the decks, walk on the decks. So my decks always have cat energies and these decks will be no different.

The Adorbs....

See how big kitten got? He's almost as long as Jethro. Toby is just 9 months... and almost as long as a Maine Coon. Big Kitteh!

Embracing life

I've probably mentioned before that all my walls came down during the fall this year. This is a good thing, as my walls had gotten phenomenally thick since my dad's death in 2003. 

At the point my dad died, it was just too much. My mom left us in 1999,  I left a 5 year relationship in 2000, my Grandfather left us in 2000, I had surgery in 2001, our favourite 12 year old cat left us in 2003, my children moved to live with their dad in 2003, and then my dad died.

The doctor I was seeing at the time said there had been so many events and so much loss in my life, that she didn't believe I could handle one more thing. She suggested I see a therapist, but the one I had been seeing back then went on maternity leave and I could not see myself starting over with someone new at that point. It was just more then I could handle.

I spent 2 years completely celibate. Which is completely out of character for me. Until then I had gone from one relationship to the next, with little break in between any.  I was celibate at this point because I was so fragile, anything going wrong could have destroyed me. Touch was too much. Though I am fussy as to who touches me and why, this is the point where I stopped wanting anyone to touch me.  That's when I started to cringe at most physical contact.

I build a wall, a very thick wall to protect what was left of me, my sanity, my ability to continue on, like a wounded warrior.  Sadly as time passed and things changed, I was stuck behind my wall. So thick, and I wasn't sure how it was going to come down.

I suspect this wall did not help my relationship with my 2nd husband. Especially since he could see way beyond the wall. His misguided attempts at trying to poke holes into my wall, did not really help, other then to increase my paranoia and put up curtains in the more volatile areas. I do know he meant well. He really did want to help me find my way out of my maze.

I'm more or less at peace with the events that have happened since 1999. I'm still processing some things, but lately my emotionally processing has gone from slower then a snail stuck in crazy glue, to the pace of a turtle. I'm processing a lot of the hurt, and the pain and trying to turn it into positives.

I'm sad that the POF guy got involved in a situation where he could not deliver, but really it's HIS loss. I'm an awesome person, and he'll never get to know exactly HOW awesome I really am other then in his dreams.

I will dance with the stars again, and feel the waves of the ocean. I will soar like the red-tailed hawk and roar like the bobcat.  I will embody the spirit of the dragonfly and bring magick to those around me. I will listen to wolf's wisdom, and continue walking through the path less travelled. I will continue tearing the walls that chain me. I will be one with all that is, all that was and all that will ever be.  I will dance with Kali. I will go to places I've dreamed, but never thought possible.

I'm in the closet

About the fact that I still go and look out the window when I hear the snow removal vehicles. Just 5 minutes ago I was looking out the window watching a truck from the city going around the island in front of my house removing a fair amount of loose snow on the 2 inches of ice covering the road.

I will also go look and watch my driveway being cleared by the guy I hired. Of course most of this happens in the middle of the night. Since it wakes me up and I won't be able to fall back asleep with the noise, why not watch the truck move the snow.

I bumped someone.

Yesterday for the first time since I learned to drive, I actually was the one who hit someone else. I've been driving since 1993. Somehow managed not to stop on time, so hit the car in front of me.  The hit in 2009 driving around  Yamaska, I hit a stupid Sebring but the old lady was responsible. 

I was coming along Kingsley and when I tried to stop, the ABS kicked in and did not stop in time before it tapped the little car in front of me.   I stopped, got out of the car, so did the dude. I had hit the bumper dead on straight and he could not find a scratch. It was actually a good thing I did not try to go sideways, I would have hit his bumper at an angle and that would have left a mark.

I've been hit a lot harder. at a stop sign, both times on dry pavement.  I should have slowed down more before attempting to stop but at the same time there was layers of ice.

So far I've received from Amazon in 2 packages, The Pagan Cat Tarot, The Mystic Dreamer Tarot, The Silver Witchcraft Tarot, Crysalis Tarot, and the book, Tarot for yourself.  Still waiting for 2 Tarot decks and one book.

Also stopped at Fabricville and picked up 1.4m of black velvet, which I got 40% off. I will be making pouches for my new Tarot decks.

That's what she said

Sad end to the day

Today I left work at 4:30 and headed to the Rideau funeral home in DDO. It's the first time I go to a viewing of a co-worker. though he isn't the first of my work colleagues to go.

I've been emotional all day. And since Monday every time I walk in front of the flags it makes me cry.

My right ear has seborrhoeic eczema

Yesterday while talking to a co-worker I scratched the back side of my right ear, and found it to be completely covered in flakes. At first I was wondering if someone hadn't dropped a large amount of hair gel or even white glue behind my ear, though I was puzzled how I would not have noticed.

I went home and rinsed it out with water figuring if it was something on my ear it would rinse off. No, it was back once it dried.   I ended up pulling tons of flaky dead skin and putting Vaseline on it.

When I mentioned it to my friend currently living with me, she said I probably had eczema. Since I do get other forms of eczema elsewhere on my body I thought it made sense. I mentioned it to my friend at work, who also suffers from eczema and she says she gets that from time to time as well.

I did some googling and apparently this form of eczema is called seborrhoeic eczema. While the Vaseline did make my ear feel better, tonight after I put my hair up I will put Noxzema on it.

I've had it before but a much milder version. And usually it goes away alone. What puzzles me most is that I was covered it in behind my right ear, and my left ear is just fine.  

Trust Issues

I feel all discombobulated

Probably because it was a full moon a few days ago and I haven't slept well the past 2-3 nights.  That should improve as the moon wanes.

I hope people drive better today then yesterday. I live so close to work and I wanted to kill most of the ones I ran into yesterday.  Some were so afraid of the ice they were going as slow as 15km/hour. Dunno but generally in the worse conditions the speed limit is actually ok.

I've been an emotional basketcase, crying almost every day the past few days. Losing a beloved co-worker will do that to you. I've been tearing down lots of my emotional walls the past little bit, so I'm more likely to cry like a little girl then I would have a year ago.

To get me to cry a year ago, you had to really try and then you were more likely to get anger, not crying. Been crying a lot the past bit. Crying because of breakthroughs crying because of emotions I thought I'd processed, crying because of the good, the bad and the ugly.

And on that note, am taking my crying self to bathe and get myself ready for work.

The big excitement in my life this week will be when my Amazon orders arrive. As it stands 3 packages are on their way, 2 from UPS and 1 from Post Canada so far, with 5 of the 8 items I ordered. One is supposed to arrive today!

Stop signs exist only for ME in this part of Montreal

Already a sign of stopping at a stop sign is a sign of weakness and for many if they see you stopped, it means they don't have to stop.

But on ICY days it seems EVERYONE cannot stop. Except me.

I seem to be able to stop at stop signs, and my doing so means NO ONE ELSE DOES.

On a day like today I feel like driving like the road belonged to me and see how people like it when I blatantly disregard street signs.

I hate people. I hate the West island of Montreal, I hate Montreal, I hate being here at my job.

and 2015 already really sucks.

Good-bye Lorenzo :(

So I got the info for Lorenzo Delpeche's viewing and funeral

Viewing is on Wednesday January 7th, 2015 at Rideau Memorial Gardens from 4pm to 9pm. 4275 Sources blvd

Funeral on Thursday  January 8th, 2015, at 11 am 4250 de Maisonneuve West. Westmount. The church is the Bethel Gospel Chapel 

EDITED: Here is the link to online obituary. 

Walk away from Amazon.....

Good thing I'm working tomorrow, I need to step away from the browser and Amazon.ca.

Yesterday I ordered 4 Tarot decks:  Crysalis Tarot, Crystal Visions Tarot, Silver Witchcraft Tarot and the Tarot of the Celtic Fairies.

Today I ordered 2 Tarot decks: Mystic Dream Tarot and Tarot of Pagan cats,  but in the mini format which should be the same size as regular playing cards, for playing crazy 8's for instance. :)  No I don't intend to play cards with the Tarot of the Pagan cats, but it will fit in my camping gear more easily then bigger Tarot cards.

I also ordered 2 Tarot books, One is Crowley's Thoth book. I could have sworn I had a copy but some of my books have disappeared with time.  The other is a book that my daughter has Tarot for yourself, by Mary Greer, and I wanted to use it to do practice my tarot reading skills. It's very likely I gave the book to my daughter because at the time I did not use it. But I know I've looked for it twice in my house since she left. So best buy myself a new copy.

As for the two friends of mine who so nicely tried telling me I wasn't a fool, well it doesn't matter whether I was or not, if I feel like I was played like a fool, it's a feeling.... and it's going to take a while to go away. 

Double Dick Dude

Stumbled upon this article this morning, posted by a friend and found it fascinating.

This man was born with 2 fully functionally penises. If you want to see it for yourself just go on Tumbr, and search for DoubleDickDude.  You can also  read this.

I'm very curious to read his memoir. I find it awesome that he is currently happily in a relationship with a couple with whom he has a nice 3-way relationship.  It just goes to show that for just about any differences you might have someone out there is going to love you not despite it but also because of it.

Finding that person might be hard but I think in this day and age with the internet, we have a much higher chance of finding people who like us for who we are then ever before.

My baby called me :)

I was so thrilled last night, my youngest daughter. who currently lives in London, UK,  messaged me on Facebook and asked if it was ok to Skype.

I only have skype on my Android at the moment, but I have skyped already several people that way, full video no less and it amazes me that sometimes it's even better then MSN messenger used to be back in 2007 with video. Though it has it's issues too. Sometimes sound still doesn't come across properly.

Anyhow, we talked about 2 hours, was very cool. I is a happy mama.

I've also spent hours on this site researching tarot decks. There are 3 that are really talking to me at the moment that are for sale on Amazon and I might actually order them today.

My friend in Ireland wants me to do a reading for him, and I've tried reading with both my Witches Tarot [the Ellen Cannon Reid version] and my Tarot of the Spirit without much success.  I've outgrown my witches Tarot and I'm finding my Tarot of the Spirit too dark. 

 I haven't been able to read with my Thoth Crowley deck since my early 20's.  I mean I can, but it scares me a little. I've predicted deaths and destruction with that deck with scary accuracy and was made to be afraid of it.    I still LOVE my Thoth deck. I love to sit with it and meditate. But I really don't want to read anyone's future with it.

The 3 decks that are talking to me the most at the moment are the Chrysalis Tarot,  the Mystical Cats Tarot, and the Tarot of the Celtic Fairies.   I've got them in my Amazon cart ready to purchase.

There was the Rainbow Travellers Tarot that talked to me but must be purchased from the Artist. Not sure I want it that badly atm.

There's a few others talking to me that I put in my Amazon wish list, like the Mystic Dreamer Tarot, the Celtic Dragon Tarot Kit, The Silver Witchcraft Tarot Kit, and the Sacred Circle Tarot: A Celtic Pagan Journey.

I have spent hours looking at tarot decks and reading reviews. It's not the same as seeing the cards in person like I used to be able to at the Melange Magique back in the day.   They had a binder that displayed each deck they had for sale, as many cards as would fit the page for the deck.  Helped me choose the Witches Tarot and the Tarot of the Spirit.

I'm such a fool

This guy I met on POF back in September, I get the feeling he's had a fun time stringing me along.

December 19th, the day my vacation started he said it was great to be on vacation that he'd see me a couple of times at least.

What a load of hogwash. I got exactly ONE FUCKING text message from him since the 19th.

Yep. Couldn't even be bothered to send me messages during his vacation.I can't believe I bought into his story. What a fucking naive idiot I have been.

The sad part is I like the guy. But at this point I don't believe a word that comes out of his mouth.

You know when you tell someone you have trust issues and they do exactly what it takes to make them worse.

I mean I didn't want an intense relationship where you spend 24-7, 7 days a week with someone. I thought wanting to see someone about once a week and talk most days would be sufficient. Along with the odd week-end camping or canoeing trip.

But apparently that's too much too ask.

Apparently I'm at the very bottom of things that matter for him.

You'd think at my age I wouldn't be played like a fool, but apparently there's no fool like an old fool.

Happy 2015 - with a bad start.

The new year started poorly. Looking at my Facebook feed this morning I realized something was horribly wrong. I saw a message from a ex work colleague to another work colleague about his passing.

I was shocked. I've worked with Lorenzo Delpeche somewhere between 15-20 years. He was a funny, interesting and a sweet man.

He used to screech my name in his high falsetto voice when he would see me, which would make me blush a little and smile coyly.

With most interactions, I would leave with a smile on my face. He brought smiles and laughter to most who got to know him.  He was a big man with an even bigger heart.

He leaves behind 2 young daughters, family and friends who miss him already tremendously. May you rest in peace Lorenzo.

Updated with funeral information.

Toby tries to woo her

This is the third visit Toby makes to my friends house in Kingsbury. Their female cat is never impressed with other animals. She barely tolerates the dog and cat she lives with. So she is generally unimpressed with Toby's presence in the house.  Usually just being in the same room, Pixel growls. Toby managed to get reasonably close and within line of sight. Maybe there is hope!

Despite all the warnings Toby got, he really liked hanging out under the Christmas tree, and we did tolerate him when he wasn't attacking the tree.

The little putz and his shenanigans

Despite having been sprayed a few times with the water bottle I caught him pawing at a hanging decoration. When he heard the camera click he ran probably remembering the water bottle.

 Here the little putz hides on the chair to paw at the dog's tail.

Kittens

Have you ever tried to do a tarot reading with an inquisitive kitten?

I don't recall but he seems paws-on. He always seem to want to touch the cards