Good bye

I devote this blog to my best friend "C" who lost her father yesterday.

Don't grieve for me, for now I'm free-
I follow the plan God laid for me.
I saw His face, I heard His call,
I took His hand and left it all...
I could not stay another day,
To love, to laugh, to work or play;
Tasks left undone must stay that way.
And if my parting has left a void,
Then fill it with remembered joy.
A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss...
Ah yes, these things I, too, shall miss.
My life's been full, I've savoured much,
Good times, good friends, a loved-ones touch,
Perhaps my time seemed all too brief-
Don't shorten yours with undue grief.
Be not burdened with tears of sorrow,
Enjoy the sunshine of the morrow.

Respectfully,
Cat x

Medium

Today I had my medium Alan come to my house to do readings for some people. I was a little apprehensive as I have never really dealt with a medium before. I thought that I would surely have a message or two from my dearly departed parents, quell surprise when I heard nothing from them. I did however have a message from my mother's mother (my grandmother) and my father's father (my grandfather). Alan (the medium) said what letters their names began with and even went so far as to say what the name sounded like. For my grandmother he said the name started with an "E" and sounded like Elspeth or Elsie, definitely an "ES" sound, her name was Elsa, not a common name. He spoke of things about her that even though there is no possible way he could have known any of this information. My grandfather gave clues to his appearance and habits of his. I knew it had to be him because of the description that he gave and some of his mannerisms. There was also another man that he described in rather full detail, right down to a photo that I would see of him, that was out, and that had a crack running down the right hand corner of the photo. He said that this picture was out, not in a book or a box and in a place that I would quite often see it. I was quite amazed at the details that Alan was able to give about the people who were coming forward. All the other people who had readings with Alan said the same thing, they were shocked by the details that he could give about the people that were sending messages through him for us. Was it earth shaking news.... no... what it was though was closure and comfort. Closure in knowing that my parents have moved on or have come back to this earth plane in a new life form or maybe they just don't have anything to say to me ( a first!). Comfort comes from the fact that my ancestors must have learned their life lessons that they are free to stay in the ever after, but still remember me and in fact still watch out for me. An interesting day, a fulfilling day. A medium Saturday that I hope to repeat in the future.
Cosmically yours,
Cat x

Passion, do you have it?

"If you can't be passionate about something or someone, you shouldn't even have that in your life because you're stealing the experience from them and from you."
Jay Abraham
Quite a strong statement I thought, though very true. Passion is what makes us tick. If you are not passionate about something (or someone) why would we even bother getting out of bed in the morning. It seems that all to many of us go through life not realizing what our passion(s) is. I am reading a great book called the Passion Test, it really opens your eyes to the world around you. I highly recommend it. There are many ways to determine what your passion is and how to obtain it. Also there are many explanations as to why so many people never realize or even worse ever attain their passion. Passion is not just about love as in a physical sense, but what makes your world go 'round, what makes your life worth living. The rules for determining your passion or passions are very easy. I am not going to tell them to you, you have to read the book. It's not a big book, but it has a lot of big ideas, and even better gives you the tools to build a passageway to your passion. One other notation from the book is "when you feel truly passionate about something, you will always have the ability to create it in your life". If you have kids it is never to early to get them on the idea of defining their passion (it will change daily, weekly, maybe even hourly) but it makes them aware of the control that they have over their lives. A strong moral to instill in an emerging life. Read the book, it will open your eyes to your abilities, reawaken your dreams, and define your mistakes. Life isn't easy so every little bit of direction or thought provocation is a great help. One thing the book says is that sleep is a great medication for the tired soul... this tired soul is taking that bit of advice to heart.
Good night... tomorrow is a new day... another chance to get something right.
Dreamily yours,
Cat x

Paris

The last few days have been rather spring like here in the northern country. I and many others thought, "Oh, maybe the worst of winter is behind us" hmmmm, well mother nature must be PMSing 'cause she is throwing a fit of snow and howling winds at us. I live on the top of a hill and when the wind blows in from the north (like it is) the roof of the house makes a vibrating noise, this noise almost sounds like someone saying "shhhhiiiiiitttttt" then I realize that no, it is just me. I hate the wind. Yes, you are right C I am complaining. I would much rather be in Paris sitting in a little Bistro just off the Champs De Elyse's sipping a cafe Au lait and watching all the beautiful people stroll by. It is thoughts and dreams such as these that help me get through these sorts of nights of howling winds, I don't think the winds ever howl in Paris, well, unless you are up the Eiffel then they do howl a bit. A friend of mine is heading of to Paris next week, I am so jealous, I would love to go, even if it meant carrying her luggage for her and ironing her socks, anything to be in the city of lights and love... love of all things French. Oh well, maybe I will just call up a couple of my friends and meet up at Chez Michels again, going there filled me with " la joie de vivre" or in Italian," La Dolce Vita" any way you say it it has to sound better than " another 15 - 25 Cm's expected with high winds making for impossible visibility. SSSShhhhhhhiiiiittttttt, did you hear that in the winds? That time I did, defiantly time to head to bed and pull the blankets over my head.

Till next time, breezily yours,

Cat x

Oh, what a night.

I just got home from having one of the funnest nights in a long time. Dinner with friends, great food- no wait- excellent food and loads of laughs. Me and 8 friends met at a local restaurant, Chez Michels, and ate the most glorious food I have ever tasted. The salad was a simple green rocket with Belgian Endive, but the dressing was to die for. I had the stuffed chicken breast (stuffed with goat cheese and spinach) which was to die for. The house wine was a French selection, perfect, not too dry not too sweet, it was to die for. Yep, I know, I should be dead by now, with all this stuff that I had that was to die for. Everyone was chatting away and enjoying their food. There was never an awkward silence or anyone looking at their watches wondering when it was appropriate to say that they had to leave. Only the staff was doing that once the clock struck 9. There was nothing left on any of the plates, a testament to the fine cooking skills of the chef. Chef even came out and had his picture taken with us all, such a nice man that Michel. After the meal 4 of us wandered over to the pub to have a last glass of wine and a wee chat. The perfect end to a great evening. We all agreed that once a year is not enough, we need to get together at least once every season. To my friends, Cynthia, Laura, Paula, Dayle, Tracey, Karen, Janice and Diane, I thank you for a great night.

Cheers,

Cat x

That song takes me back...

I was watching that black box in my living room simply wasting time, when a song came on that took me way back. It was being used for a commercial, can't tell you what the commercial was for, but the song was Blue Skies being sung by Willie Nelson. In a flash I was sitting in the ferry lineup on Salt Spring Island, I am in my then boyfriends Datsun 280z (that thing could motor) looking out the window and sunroof at the rain coming down ( of course, it's Salt Spring Island, the rain forest of Canada). Willie Nelson is singing away on the radio, I can remember that exact moment. I even recall the smell of the car. The backseat (very small and tight) had been chewed by this boyfriends mother's dog, the dog hated fake leather apparently. With all the dampness of the west coast there was always this permeating scent of dog slobber and maybe a hint of wee (dog). I remember that car very well, there were bumper stickers all over it proclaiming this boyfriends love of everything country, but in a tacky way. One of them said,"Cowgirls don't get old, they just become saddle bags." This guy was in the military and spent many weeks at a time away. One time he came back and all the bumper stickers were gone. He asked what the h-e- double hockey sticks had happened to all his beloved stickers, I claimed total innocence and told him that there had been a rash of thefts in the area and the only thing he lost were his stickers and all his Loverboy tapes (hate Loverboy, especially after hearing the song, Gotta Do It My Way, 8000 times!). But Willie Nelson I could listen too over and over again. I love music, all kinds of music. Whenever I hear anything by the Stones I am transported back to 1959 Oakdean Cres. I am in my room, with my hairbrush in hand, lip syncing in the mirror to all the songs. I knew every word to every song they did. I knew exactly when Mick was going to go "Ew hew" in Sympathy for the Devil, when the black girls were going to sing "Hey hey, gotta getta away" Yeah, I could sing every song, but don't ask me what the capitol of Hungary is, or what 17x43 is, or even what was the year that Columbus first came on the air (bet you thought I meant the "other" Columbus, I mean Peter Falk). Music has always been so important to me, probably the most important spacial element in my existence . I told Ruffel that when I die, the lid is to be closed, every one gets a shot of vodka coming through the door, and the only music to be played is "You Can't Always Get What You Want" and "Satisfaction" by, you guessed it the Stones. I loved David Bowie too, but somehow Diamond Dogs just doesn't sound right for a funeral march for Cat. My parents loved their music too. My dad was pretty cool, he had all the Beatles records and he used to love to dance with my mum to the song, "I Just Called To Say I Love You", in fact I think that was "their" song. Yep, my dad was cool, but he could not snap his fingers... used to make my mum laugh her head off when he tried. I remember mum listening to Englebert Humperdink... Jeez, with a name like that... I'd have changed it. My dad also had a fav record that he would put on when he was in a reflective, homesick mood. This record was a recording of several different trains leaving and coming into train stations. Yep, trains. Crickey, he would play them loud. It was weird, you would think that all trains would sound the same, but actually, if you listened close enough (hard not too at full blast) you could hear a subtle difference. Those were "connecting" moments for my dad and I, till my mum would come into the living room yelling (so she could be heard over the locomotives) "JOHN, turn that bloody thing down!" and that would end our languorous moments of being back in England waiting for the Flying Scotsman to pull into Victoria station. Ah the memories, may they jump out at you when ever you hear a special or painful piece of music. Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple makes me cringe and look for the Clearasil, high school sock hops were so lonely. But my nine year old hums Smoke on the Water and says that they play at school dances even to this day. I always have my Ipod on when I am on the treadmill, there I also listen to the Stones, but mostly songs like "I'm a Barbie Girl" and "Baby got Back" get me going a little faster. I guess I look at them as more of a hope and a threat so I better move it, or I will never be Barbie size and will only appeal to rap stars if my booty gets any bigger. Speaking of which I better hit the mill or I'll tune out in front of that black box again.
Musically yours till next time,
Cat x

Horoscopes- fact or fiction?

I read my horoscope everyday. I don't do anything that I am warned about by Georgia Nicols. For instance, she says, "today it is OK to spend 10$ or 10 million" or she will say, "do not make any major decisions between 4:12 a.m. and 9:37 p.m. Trust me, you want to do what she says. There has been the odd time when I have not followed her advice (really the stars advice) and there has been hell to pay. I have the year ahead of me printed out too. There are some generalizations, there are bound to be, but one thing she said is that I am going to have a vacation this year. I will travel somewhere and it will be great. She is right again! For my birthday my sister gave me a trip anywhere in the world, so we are going to go to Sweden in November some time. November in Stockholm is beautiful. The lights glowing, the candles in all the restaurants, the cobblestone streets of Old Town, and it is pitch dark by 2:30 in the afternoon. It is so strange to walk down the streets (they are packed) and you are thinking, wow, why are all these people out walking around in the middle of the night? In fact why am I walking around in the middle of the night? Oh right, it is only 2:48 in the afternoon. Stockholm is a great city, there is so much activity. The market square full of flowers,Christmas decorations, food stuffs, hot Glogg, and of course the selection of Swedish football sweaters. I bought a load of really neat postcards with old fashioned art of Tomtin ( a little gnome fellow in a red hat). There was a Royal marching band going up and down the main shopping line, stopping every few minutes to do some shouting and making us all laugh, no idea what he was saying, but it must have been funny as all the Swedes were laughing. The leader had a huge white moustache that curled all round his rosy cheeks, just looking at him made you smile. He was very exaggerated in his walk and mannerisms, maybe that is what they were all laughing at. Stockholm, I can hardly wait to see you again. Till November, Hej do och sova bra!
Cat x

What a gorgeous day.

What a ab fab day today. The sun was shining brilliantly through the windows. My family was all here for dinner. Roast beef with a honey Dijon basting, roast potatoes, broccoli-cauliflower bake and hot apple-strawberry crisp with hot custard for dessert. Yummy. I find it easier to cook for a load of people than just a couple. Why is that? I think because I am a person of extremes. There is no grey area with me, it is either black or white, love or hate, yes or no. I don't find cooking a chore at all, I love to get all the dishes out and use everything that I have. I love going to grocery stores more than going to a shoe store- yes I really am a woman- just would rather cook than shop for shoes. I love to make people feel good in their tummy, my way of giving them a hug from the inside out. Now I don't have to do any cooking for a couple of days. There are left overs from the ham and scalloped potato supper last night to the roast beef dinner tonight. I think that meal times are very important, that the family should all sit together and enjoy not only the food but also each other. The French and the Italians (actually most Europeans) have the right idea about meal times. It is the Americans that seem to have made meal times into a marathon of eating, maybe this is why the North Americans suffer more from obesity than any other country in the world. So if any of you readers would like to come to dinner some time, just let me know and I will be sure to set an extra place at the table for you. Chow on!
Cat x

To My Best Friend...

This is a thank you to my best friend "C". Thanks for a lovely evening full of laughter and feel good emotions. I love our chats and our chance to just be ourselves. You make me laugh out loud and think about life and all its ups and downs... I'm not complaining, just stating the facts ma'am. Hope you have a good week at work and lets meet up again soon for more of the same medicine. Cheers to you and yours,
Cat x

I had my reasons...

Sometimes stuff happens and you get sucked into a vortex of activity from which you cannot escape... or even more importantly... you don't want to escape from... if you catch my drift. My good friend C said that I only seemed to complain on my blog, hmmm, I thought I was only making my feelings known. I guess that comes back to the old saying of "is the glass half full, or half empty?" I like to think that I go through life thinking that my glass is half full. Really, there are many aspects of my life that I love... I just have a hard time remembering them some times. One thing that I do love though is socializing. I love a good story. I love to laugh. There are people on this planet who make me laugh... out loud, as in really loud. My good friend C is one of them. The guy in this photo is another, I would tell you who he is, but I have to protect the innocent, namely me! Ah, he is a funny guy with funny ideas and tells a funny story. The funniest thing of all though is that he is dead serious with his tales. He has a medical problem that involves a certain testicular area of his, well, testicular area. He will tell anyone, and I mean just about anyone, in great detail about his "tethering" as he calls it. I feel for him, he is in pain. He has tried to have it fixed, but, it is still not right. I have never seen it, don't need to, but the description of said problem is enough to make me feel giddy with relief that I am a woman. Enough said. This fellow also loves to analyze. He will sit and compound a formula that is neurophysist worthy on how to get his way, he always seems to come out on top. He is also pretty graphic in his description of people that he does not like or people who have crossed him. His favorite word is the female "c" word (rhymes with punt). He will use the female "c" word (rhymes with runt) several times. I hate the female "c" word (rhymes with bunt) I hate it more than the male "p" word (rhymes with Venus)ugh. The descriptive assassination of said perpetrators of crossing (pissing him off) will also be littered with the "f" word (rhymes with puck) just to drive home the point... ha ha, drive home the point, sometimes I even amaze myself. If you're still wondering what I am talking about read it again. Anyway the long gist of this story is that this fellow and a couple of other of Ruffel's friends came over last night. They had been away at the farm show in the city and decided to unwind their aching feet by pouring whiskey and beer down their throats. I had to ask the DD, how it felt sitting on the outside of that circle looking in, he said in a somber voice, "It is a little different." That would be an understatement. Needless to say the day wore into evening, wore into a new day, wore into dawn. So be it. You only live once. I needed the laugh. Most of the company was very easy to look at and I learned many new things, most of which I can't remember. I really am no good at seeing in the early dawn hours and still try to function. So you see, I really did have my reasons for not writing yesterday.

But I am back at it today...

reasonably yours,

Cat x

I Loved Punk Rock

Right, the time is sometime in the late '70's early 80's, I am trying desperately to get my hair just the right shade of purple... you know, not dark, but more of a lilac shade. Yep, I was a wanna be punker. I didn't go to the extreme of piercing all notable body parts (not that early in my life anyway),just the hair colour, the clothing, and most importantly, the attitude. Buck the system, walk with your head held high, daring, yes, daring anyone to question your motive in life and ta-da, I'd let them have it! Not really, remember I started the story with "wanna be". I was raised in a stiff upper lip Victorian/Navy type household, no way was I going to get away with that sort of "to hell with you" attitude. The purple hair, well, I was a hairdresser so I was always fiddling with cut and colour. The music, hmmm, my fav were the Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Fabulous Pink Poodles (what! ya never heard of them, where have you been?), B-52's, Ramones, New York Dolls ah... the good old days. The days when you went out to buy the latest vinyl (round, not S&M gear) none of this downloading onto your I-Pod, you actually listened to the music, let it fill your space, your mind, your atmosphere. So why all this talk of punk rock and youth? Well, I stumbled upon a fellow named Pete Haynes. He was the drummer in a band called the Lurkers. They were around in the 70's and were one of the first in the series of punk bands. If you google them you will find them on you-tube. Anyhow, this fellow Pete Haynes has a blog and has written some books. One of the books is called "God's Lonely Men" it is about the early days of the Lurkers. It is quite amusing and rallied 'round all my fond memories of my youth, that alone is worth reading the book for. Also, I wonder if this bloke could be a relation of mine. I have a brother named Peter, who was named after my uncle, Peter. I will have to do some more research on the family plantation and see what sort of connection I can make. Till then I will just plug in the earphones (yes we are now a member of the I-Pod generation) and listen to some of my old favs, and try to squeeze into my old pair of black stovepipe pants and slip on a pair of hot pink pumps... hmmm, wonder if I can get the grey hair to morph into a nice shade of lilac, EGADS!... Nanna used to have lilac hair the odd time and she was in her 80's, maybe times aren't so different after all.
Till next time, keep your hair on,
Cheers, Cat x

All Right I'll Admit It

OK, so I complained about the Olympics and the waste of tax payers money... but... tonight I fell into the "oh's ... ah's" of watching the male figure skaters. How do they make it look so easy? I don't see any wings on their skates, yet they seem to fly through the air with the greatest of ease. They do those sow cow, flying camels, eye of the needle things like it's as easy as brushing your hair. I don't think it is though. Do you see how their chests heave while they sit and wait for their scores? I had to laugh at Ruffel... he has taken up skating. Oh, I'm not laughing at that. What I find funny is that while we were watching some of the women's speed skating (short track) he asked "what's the matter with them, can they not stand up straight?" This is after the race, and they are circling round the track trying to work the lactic acid out of their thunderous thighs, and trying to get their heart rate down, and get their breath back. So gotta hand it to Ruffel, he does two and half laps ( 183 yards) and he has no problem standing up straight, mind you it has taken him 23 minutes... but I still give him a medal for trying. I won't put my skates on, I'm too afraid of falling. I watch those men on the ice and I am struck not only by the beauty of the skating but the bravery of those twirls and jumps. I can only imagine how much pain they must have gone through to get to this point in their careers. So I will watch with amazement the skating action not only on the TV but also out my front window as Ruffel goes another round with the blades. Glide on brother...glide on.
Tuning out for now,
Cat x

Moving Day

Don't you just hate the act of moving. Sure it can be exciting to be moving into a new zone. A new apartment, house, castle or even just a time zone. However the process of moving is exhausting. It is amazing how much "stuff" we accumulate in our lives. I admire the person who can look at and enjoy something for a short while and then be done with it. Whether they pass the object on to someone else to enjoy or just trash it, they have the strength to just "let go". I do not have that strength. I have lots of "stuff" that I just do not have the heart to let go of. Till you have a day of total frustration of not being able to find something that you are looking for or are quite frankly fed up with trying to find space for everything to fit into. There is also the issue of dusting. There is nothing like a move to clear the cobwebs and realize just how dirty/dusty the place is you are living in or for that matter working in. So why do we hold onto so many things that we just don't need? Is it because it used to belong to someone who was very important in your life who is no longer around? Is it because it is something that you feel that you just "might need" one day? How many times have you gone on a cleaning binge just to find that , "damn, I just threw that out last week, I knew I should have kept it". Well chances are that that just does not happen, or very rarely any ways. No, I think that everyone should move every couple of years, just for the sake of a good clean out and up. In my lifetime thus far I have moved no less than 35 times, and I am only 50 years old. That is more than the average person, I am thinking. These moves have been across continents, oceans and between mere blocks. Today was the moving day of the clinic that I work in. It wasn't too bad of a move... for me. However, the doc that I work for has/had his work cut out for him. This move represents many things for him. A new building, recently renovated and offering a huge work space. Cool updates, there is a bath for dog washing. The floor is high tech like rubber tiles, like what you find in the fancy garages. They will be a bitch to keep clean, but they look good. I think I will get a supply of Polynesian slippers for people to slip into when they come through the door. The phone won't be in the new place till Friday, so it will be a challenge to handle the inquiries. A huge inspection this week which added to the drama of a move. But the place looks great and bright and a new start. I congratulate the doc on his design concept and his ability to weed out some of the old and expandualte on the new. Cheers to you and continued success in your endeavours!

See you in the am... can hardly wait to get my own key.

Clinically yours,

Cat

Just like any other day, but better

Valentines Day.

Family skating on the home made rink. Family gathered round for sheppards pie (everyone's fav) chocolate cake with strawberries for dessert, rose wine and everyone smiling. Perfect.

cat x

Just a reminder

This time of year is enough to drive me crazy. I am restless and full of resentment. Resentment because I know that there are people in the world who can walk out their front door and be somewhere. Boredom has set in and its roots have run deep. Deep, deep, deep. If I lived in a city or even in a big town there would be lots to do. Why just look at this picture of the Shakespeare book store in Paris. Not only is it an amazing place full of interesting, one of a kind books, but, also it is full of interesting people. I am someone who has been to many places and met many people, and I have to tell you it is killing me sitting in the middle of a windy, snowy hill with nothing but boredom. I feel like Zza Zza Gabor in the series Green Acres. Oh how she lamented over not being in her beloved New York City... I feel her pain. I understand. I know that this is only a passing phase, it is just that time of year. The days are getting longer, the sun seems a little brighter. Just another 4 months and I should be able to sit out by the pool and read a good read and catch some rays. Just 4 long months to go...

Daydreaming in winter land,

Cat x

Where did all the good TV go?

I am not in a very good mood. First, my fav show LA Ink was not on last night as was previously advertised... strike one. Second my next fav show, Ghost Hunters was not on due to some show about a bunch of athletic types getting their groove on. Strike two... Now that the Olympics are on (yawn) there will be nothing on TV but them. Egad, why does the whole world have to stop when some sport thing is happening? I mean, really, why tie up all the channels for that. If you did a world wide poll on how many people actually give a rats ass about some skiers and skaters and other winter sport stuff you would find that it would be a very low percentage. Personally, I feel that sports, both the Olympics and all other organized sports is a blatant waste of tax payers money and an obscene way to earn a living. Why does some guy who throws a ball through a hoop or slaps a little round black thing into a net need 8 million dollars to do it? If you added up all the money that just 1 hockey team worth of players made in a year it would help out Haiti for eons, and that is only one team. Add up all the hockey, baseball,basketball and whatever other sports things there are out there and it would be in the multi- multi- millions. Too crazy for this girl to fathom.
Ticked off in TV land,
Cat x

Happy Valentine's Day

To those of you who don't get the local rag, I give you my column of Valentine's Day sayings. I hope you enjoy them. You might think that I could have waited till Sunday to put them up, but truth is Kat Von D is back on the air tonight and that is all I can think about. Don't you just love her show? WHAT!! Don't say she is a flake, she is sensitive and brilliant (artistically at least). So, I am sort of copping out by using my column. Good thing is I will have all kinds of things to ruminate for tomorrow's blog. Hope you enjoy the sayings.
Lost love, found love, love on the run. It’s all about love on the 14th of February. Are you a hopeless romantic who wishes that every day was the 14th of February? Good luck I say. It is such a burden to survive yet another Valentine’s Day. Doesn’t matter if you are in love, out of love, or indifferent, the commercial success of Valentine’s Day is almost equivalent to Christmas and Easter. Let’s face it, the perfect holiday would be sitting around the Christmas tree which has been decorated with cut out hearts, opening boxes of chocolate rabbits and singing Kum-Bye-ya. But, that’s never going to happen, so we will just have to get through another day of “I love you” by submitting to the carnal delights of cinnamon hearts, red wine, red underwear and dinner out... such is the lust of life and love. I hope all of you have love in your day, but more importantly in your heart. Here are a few sayings to cement the feelings. Amore, Cat x
You’ll never forget your first lover, so try to make it someone you won’t regret thinking about for the rest of your life. -- Dr. Ruth Westheimer
Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat at a place called Mom’s. Never sleep with a woman (or man) whose troubles are worse than your own. – Nelson Algren
The quickest way to know a woman is to go shopping with her. – Marcelene Cox
Never close your lips to those whom you have opened your heart. – Charles Dickens
It doesn’t matter if the guy is perfect or the girl is perfect, as long as they are perfect for each other. –Matt Damon and Ben Affleck from Good Will Hunting
If you want to sacrifice the admiration of many men for the criticism of one, go ahead, get married. – Katherine Hepburn
Do not let too strong a light come into your bedroom. There are in a beauty a great many things which are enhanced by being seen only in a half-light. – Ovid
Love is everything it’s cracked up to be... It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. – Erica Jong
If you think marriage is going to be perfect, you’re probably still at your reception. – Martha Bolton
Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down. --- Oprah Winfrey
Thy friend has a friend, and thy friend’s friend has a friend; be discreet. – The Talmud
There is no remedy for love but to love more. --- Henry David Thoreau
Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.—Lucille Ball
The first duty of love is to listen. – Paul Tillich
TaTa for now, (almost tattoo)
Cat x

It's Lambing Time

I work in a vet office, and I hear a lot of stories about farms, farmers and animals. Some of them are sad, some make you feel glowy all over and some are just darn right funny. So today I am working away and I get a call from a client who wants to pick up some meds. No problem I am there and the meds are in stock. This client I like to call the "big bad wolf" cause when he comes in he sits down and licks his lips constantly whilst speaking to me. Needless to say it is very unsettling, I feel like I am a sushi roll on display at the take away counter, or a lamb chop about to be devoured at the very least. The guy is harmless (Ruffel knows him and has known him for eons) but he just makes my skin crawl. Any way, today he starts to tell me all his stories about his "hundreds "of sheep, about how you have to go and check on them every two hours once they start lambing or they will freeze to death, about what he feeds them, how much he gets for them at market, how he got attacked by his ram, and on and on and on. For about an hour. I finally had to tell him that I had to get back to work and he took the hint and left. However, after listening to all his talk about sheep and lambs it reminded me about the funniest story that I have ever heard about sheep and wolves/coyotes. There is a large producer of lambs not to far from me and they have had really bad years for loss of lambs due to wolves and or coyotes. So, they held a village meeting about setting a bounty on the wolves/coyotes to help curb the problem. At the meeting a "city" person stood up and said "could you not just catch the male wolves and neuter them?" to which the lamb producer stood up and said "listen lady, the wolves aren't fucking the sheep, they're killing them." Funniest thing I have ever heard in my life. I still chuckle when I hear/tell that story and I have heard it a million times.
Off to count sheep in bed...
Fleecily yours,
Cat x

It's Bonspiel Time again

It is definitely getting close to spring. Not that there are any real signs out there in nature, but the signs are here in my house. Russel is a curler, and towards the end of the season there is always a bonspiel. Tomorrow is the cattleman's bonspiel. These bonspiels signal two things to me. One, I get an extra long stretch of watching whatever I want to on TV, and two, that the curling season is winding down. Russel loves to curl, has for most of his life. Curling, I just don't get it. When I first started going out with Russel (he told me not to call him Ruffel anymore, it embarrasses him) I thought that I would join the mixed curling league to spend some quality time with him. Quality time my ass, frozen ass that is. Do you have any idea how cold they have to keep that little room in order for the ice to stay frozen? Colder than a morgue, that's what I think. Must be, 'cause my fingers and feet would be frozen solid to the point that I couldn't feel them, just like they were dead. I don't know how some of the women could stand to curl in a skirt! They were real die hards, that's for sure. My curling days were short lived, one season of that and I had enough. Some of the games didn't start till 9 p.m. and didn't finish till at least 11 and then you had to drink till at least 12:30 or 1. It was a slow and agonizing death for me. Not only that, I just couldn't hit anything with that rock thing other than the other end of the rink. You are supposed to make it stop in the circle things and hope that no-one knocks it out. I got to the point that I would just toss the rock and walk away before I even saw where it landed. Just not my game. Russel takes curling very seriously, I think he is a pretty good player. Every once in a while his picture is in the paper and his name appears on a trophy, so long as he is happy, then I am happy. So I look forward to the bonspiels, not only for the extra peace and quiet around here, but also because it means that spring is coming.
Rock on, till next time,
Cat x

It was an early night

You may have noticed (or not) that I did not post a blog yesterday. Truth was I was just beat. A heavy weekend of cleaning and I am done. I did however start reading the funniest book I have ever picked up. The sad thing is that it is all about real people and the things that they say, yes, they are personal ads from the London Literary Times, and they are hilarious! I will give you an example, bear in mind that these are actual adverts for love/romance/whatever: The last time I had this much fun, I was on forty tablets a day. It's all downhill from here, so reply to edgy woman, 36, before the good times come to an abrupt end and the prescriptions finally dry up. Box no.2348 Or how about: Woman,56, much happier now. Currently at peace with herself and the world. Seeks dependable significant other who doesn't mind listening. Must like cats and darkness. Box 7322. I mean, these are hilarious. Or is it just me that sees the humor in this stuff? I really should give an example of a man's submission so here goes: Too much sex, not enough vitamin B12. Vegan love-god on the brink of mental and physical collapse (M,26) seeks pallid, calcium-deficient F for nights of apathy, depression and headaches whilst touring the moral high ground. It's all faux-fur, acrylics and re-hydrated soy at box no. 7633. I mean why wouldn't you just jump on that band wagon? One day I will have to tell you about my (very) early days of the paper dating scene (read here, desperate and lazy attempt to find love). I ( I know, hard to believe) placed an advert in the local rag (on the west coast) that ran these sorts of ads. The thing was you rang up and did a voice message that people could phone in and listen too, all for a nominal fee of course, they didn't want just any old creep calling in, had to be a psycho with at least $30.00 to their name to afford the fee. I have never had so many messages on my voice mail since that time. I would literally have 20 a day. Some people left a message, some where just trying to catch their breath ( I think that is what they were doing?) others would just listen and then hang up, actually come to think of it I did have a lot of hang ups. I think that I have missed my calling in life, maybe I should be one of those women who make all their money just by talking on the phone. Naw, I get tired of yakking all the time, easier just to write. The bottom line of the advertising for "true love" is that yes, you can meet a whole new scope of people, and yes, they are usually OK, but not what I was looking for. I think that the popularity of looking in the news ads, or more recently on-line, is that it is great for the lazy or overly busy types. I mean really, you can sit in your old PJ's with a mud pack on, a conditioner on your hair and heel cream on your feet looking for love. Or you can get all gussied up in something that doesn't fit right, pantyhose (only a man would have invented such a torturous thing) an hours worth of makeup application (so you will not look anything like the real you) and about $100 in cash. You need all the money for 1- club entrance fee, cause you just don't cut it in the looks department to get in free, 2- because you just don't cut it in the looks department, you will have to buy all your own drinks all night 3- you start to feel so depressed after 3 hours of sitting at the bar buying your own drinks and gyrating to all the songs, by yourself, cause no-one has asked you to dance, that you slip the flower girl extra cash to casually put a rose on the bar by your drink, while you "pretend" to be in the bathroom, so you can have a little bit of excitement in your evening (by this time you are pretty looped and have forgotten that you sent the rose to yourself, so you spend the next 40 minutes making a fool of yourself asking anyone who looks twice at you if they sent you the rose) 4- at closing time you are really wanked so you have to spring for a cab to get your sorry ass home 5- you talk the cabbie in to taking you through the drive through at MacDonald's so you can drown your sorrows and self pity with extra fries and a Big Mac. Then your stomach will really have something to throw into the white phone you will spend the early, early hours of the new day talking on. Yeah, see, looking at the adverts in the paper are much easier and cheaper, not to mention saving your last shred of dignity than spending a night in the real world. God, I am exhausted reliving my early years.. I am so glad that I am past all that, way past.
Teetering off to read more love adverts (for a good laugh),
Cat x

Work Done

Why is it that when Ruffel is away I seem to get so much done? It's not as if he is hanging around wanting me to do all sorts of things for him. I tell ya, I understand the saying, "When the cat is away, the mouse will play". I mean it is not that I am out philandering and doing all sorts of crazy things, no, not I. I am doing umpteen loads of laundry, cleaning, baking, sorting my closet and actually rearranging my clothes in order of preference. I mean, why is it that when he is home I have no desire to do any of these things? Can anyone explain the rationale behind all of this frenetic work? At the end of it all, it feels great. To sit and read my book knowing that everything is in its place and all work is done.
Ahhhh, life is good.
Tuning out for now,
Cat x

It's Friday Again...

Well it is the end of the week, yet again. I don't know where the time goes but it flies by. As the old saying goes " life is like a roll of toilet paper, the closer to the end you get, the faster it goes." Guess that sums up life, as Archie Bunker would say "down the terlet." Had dinner at a local restaurant tonight. Don't know why I went back there. Last time I was there I swore that I would never go back again, but memory loss kicked in and off the kid and I went. The service is terrible, the food is terrible and you just feel terrible after you leave. Egads, next time that I am feeling like going to eat somewhere I will read my blog to remind me never to go there again. Should have just come home and made a bowl of soup. Now I will spend the rest of the night feeling ill. Oh well. It will be quiet here this weekend, Ruffel has gone off ice fishing with his mates. Good-o I say. I just don't understand the appeal of sitting on a 5 gallon pail in the middle of a frozen body of water with my stick hanging over the edge. I guess it must be a guy thing that goes back to primordial days.. you know that hunting and scavenging thing that guys like to do. I am sure that he will have a good time, I know I will. I think I will start the weekend by doing some housework, that way I won't feel guilty for not doing anything else for the rest of the weekend. There is reasoning in my madness.
Dusting off for now,
Cat x

Send some good luck

I am asking everyone who reads this blog to send some good luck to my sister, Samantha. This Saturday she is writing her LSAT. She is trying to get into the Law Program at UBC, as a mature student (sorry Sam, don't mean that as it sounds!) The test that she is doing on Sat is one of those really complicated ones where they give you all sorts of information and then ask you how many were on the bus, or how many were wearing red shoes, you know, those really hard questions that we used to call riddles when we were in grade school. I'll give you an example. At the bus stop there are 14 people waiting to board the 7:15. Less than half of them are men, the rest are women. 6 of them are wearing boots, 3 are wearing sandals, 1 of them is wearing one of each. When the bus arrives all the women get on the bus first, then the men, the dog is not allowed to get on as he does not have correct change. The first 3 women on are wearing red shoes but not matching bags, one has a rip in her pantyhose that she has not yet noticed. 3 of the men forgot to shave and one forgot that he cut himself shaving and still has a piece of toilet paper stuck to his face. 1/4 of the passengers on the bus have had breakfast, 1/3 are going to MacDonald's and 1/8 are on a diet. (Got all the info so far?) here is the final question after logging all the info... what is the name of the bus driver and is it a man or a woman? Yeah, I know, and she has to answer a few hundred of these sorts of questions. Like I said we all need to send her GOOD LUCK!!! I know that if it was me having to write this test, I would just call in sick or even better... miss the bus.

So here is to Samantha, hope she does well ( I know she will, she is brilliant!) and I can hardly wait to go to her graduation, I will be the one dabbing my eyes with a hanky, so proud of my sister am I.

Lawfully yours till next time,

Cat x

Homework, or how to ruin a perfectly good evening.

The "kid" had homework tonight, and as usual he had no idea what he was supposed to do. I have to wonder what this 4 foot 70 pound breathing, functioning persona does all day when he is supposed to be learning. I know he doesn't eat anything because all of his lunch comes home. I ask him why he doesn't eat his lunch and he tells me it is because he doesn't "have time." I'm thinking, wow, he reads and does his work instead of eating... wrong, he is socializing! If this kid had to get a mark in visiting and keeping track of his friends daily actions he would be deemed a genius. Part of his homework tonight was matching Medieval persons with their job description. What the hell is an ewerer? Google it and the description given is nothing that matches the choices given on the worksheet. Frustration is mounting to Mt. Everest proportions on my part. Next comes a question on a "visual novel" that they saw today. OK, when I went to school, "visual" meant big illustrations that the teacher held up, never mind a Hollywood production. He only watched the first chapter of the story and then he had to answer some questions. Thing is, as easy as this sounds, the "kid" can't remember what he saw in the movie. He remembers there was a queen and a guy that died, and oh yeah, a dragon that speaks. Frig... no help at all. If they are going to show a movie in class, would they not discuss it after the showing? Maybe give out some supporting notes? According to the "social genius" there was no such discussion and no notes. Needless to say we had to place him under a very bright light for the Inquisition process in hopes to have any affect on shorty's' brain. By this time, I was done, I toddled off to recline in the sloping pool filled with lavender scented bubbles to ease the pain of grade four social studies. Ruffel took up the slack and finished off the frustrating task at hand. I still don't know what happened in the movie. I think I will have to track down a copy of said movie and watch it over and over again to get all the answers to what will no doubt be a lengthy series of questions aimed at testing my memory and viewing skills. Yesch...
dragonnnn my butt to bed, till next time,
Cat x

What's your Obsession?

So, do you have an obsession? Don't think you do? Just ask one of your close friends and you may be surprised at their answer.
Oxford defines obsession as "an unhealthy preoccupation." I call it "fixed on something that may very well be unobtainable. "
When I think of the people in my life, both friends and family, I can think of several obsessions that they have. My father had an obsession with having shiny shoes. A habit he developed while he was in the Navy, out of necessity really, to show up to inspection with less than stellar foot wear would result in either kp or sh duty. Neither of which was pleasant. My mother I would have to say was obsessed with having a respectable situation in life. In other words she would have loved to have had a title. When she would return to her homeland (Sweden) and she was addressed by her name of "Mrs. Haynes" it would come out as "Mrs Highness" she loved it, she would have loved to have had some sort of monarchy title. An obsession? Maybe not.
Some people are obsessed with having control over every situation in their life. To them not being in control is like spiralling out of control, and it makes them crazy. They just cannot be happy unless they are in control. So is it really an obsession? Hmmmm.
Today to say the word obsession makes one think of the movie, oh what was it called, the one where Michael Douglas has an affair with a woman who becomes obsessed with him and ends up boiling his daughters rabbit, you know the one I mean. That would be a very "unhealthy" obsession.
Calvin Klein has his own brand of obsession, and it smells OK.
So what is your obsession? I would tell you mine, but then I would obsess about how you might use it against me, or, you might like my obsession better than yours, then we would both be obsessing over the same thing... not a healthy competition.
So what do people obsess about? For some it is money, a car, a person, a job or just a certain type of acquisition.
Some might obsess about "making it" whether that means obtaining a certain authoritative position in life or just being accepted socially.
So why all this talk of obsessions? I don't know, today I just feel obsessed to talk of obsessions. Maybe because we are in for 6 more weeks of winter according to the large rodent who saw his shadow today and that has just pushed me to the brink of obsessing about how I am going to survive 6 more weeks of cabin fever and frigid temps.
Oh well, I'll just go have a hot bath and sprinkle myself liberally with Calvin Klein and hope for the best.
Obsessively yours,
Cat x

When your mouth doesn't work.

Have you ever had one of those days where your mouth just does not seem to work. I had one of those days today. I know, hard to believe with such a yappy person as I. I always have problems with the word "aluminum". It just never seems to come out right. I think that it is a form of oral dyslexia. A condition where your brain is 8 steps ahead of your mouth. Your brain is on speed and your mouth is on Valium, they just don't connect. Usually when I have one of these days the person I am trying to convey my message to just says, "uh, huh, got ya". This seems to make it worse because as soon as your mouth gets the OK to just stop trying to work, the brain further gets frustrated and tries to shove more vocabulary out of that opening known as the mouth. Even the simplest of words are difficult to spit out, it is as if your tongue is made of wood. I often wonder if the people who have their tongues pierced find that they have a difficult time speaking, constantly tripping over that round ball of metal stuck to their tongue. My good friend "C" has a diamond in her tooth, it doesn't seem to cause her any problems, but, Mick Jagger once had a ruby put in one of his teeth and found that it changed the mechanics of his speech so much (and his singing) that he had to have it removed. Ah, the dilemmas of life . I don't have any foreign bodies in my mouth, I have a hard enough time eating a Popsicle without gagging... never mind. So I guess the only reason that I can think of that I might have had such a hard time with speaking today was that I had just simply gabbed too much yesterday. So I think for the rest of the night I will just shut up and give everything a rest (it will just about kill me ya know)... here's to tomorrows gab fest.
Chattily yours,
Cat x