Happy Halloween!

Not for parents here in Vancouver, though. It's the most miserable weather out that I can remember for a Halloween today. Gray and soggy. None of the kids will notice, of course; they'll be pumped so full of sugar and adrenaline that rain will likely be experienced as a fortunate cooling spray. The parents, however, will feel it. They'll feel it as they trudge after their prancing kids, as they grind leaves and mud and pumpkin brains to mush on the sidewalk. They feel it when they encounter the little herds of smart-mouthed pre-teens walking up and down the streets waving sticks of firecrackers. They'll feel it at home, while weeding through the loot with numb fingers to detect any tampering.

But that'll all fade once the kids are quiet again, too busy eating the candy to make any ruckus about it. And, finally, for once, there will be peace.

At least until the next dentist appointment.

Note: too old to trick or treat? Come out and collect canned food for the Food Bank with Trick or Eat! You know you want to!

Christmas Shopping with the Stars

So, for reasons unknown, my brother gets the Neiman Marcus catalog. We've been getting it (his mail still gets sent here, regardless of the fact that he's moved out) for a few months now, and I've always looked at it with a mixture of wonder and incredulity; the prices for some (hideous) items are nothing short of astounding. Although it did explain how the store stays open; if it sells a total of 3 items, their quarter is made.

And then, this week, we got the Christmas Book. Now some of the pages are filled with the usual fare; $500 crystal Buddhas, ugly dresses, Manolo Blahniks. In there somewhere is a Louis Vuitton Jewelry Box, for a whopping $44,200. But then there are the Fantasy Gifts.

Would you like a personal Photo Booth? Only $20,000 (I know, you can buy two photo booths and still save money compared to the jewelry box. It's like budgeting on a whole new level). How about a Grand Empire Railroad? Large enough that your son can ride it, it includes a locomotive, cars, caboose, station, and 1000 feet of track. I kid you not. For the steal of a deal of $200,000.

Not extravagant enough? How about a private concert with Sir Elton John (production costs and travel costs not included)? Yes, Sir Elton John himself will come to you, and play for you and your friends. As a special bonus gift, you will also receive an Elton John Signature Series Red Baby Grand Piano, yours to keep. Limited offer, only one will be sold! Yours for the low, low price of $1.5 million dollars. (To be entirely fair, the 1.5 million goes to the AIDS Foundation.)

And if you'd rather hold the concert away from your home, you can always fly there in your brand new Skycar. For only $3.5 million, you can own your very own, real-life, flying car. Because ground transportation? Is for the poor.

I wonder if that's where Bill Gates buys his Christmas gifts. I did notice there were no gold-plated monkey sock-puppets. Clearly, someone at Neiman Marcus is dropping the ball.

Amazing Thursday

Today was such a great day, and it's not even over. This morning, I got up and cleaned a little, as my parents got home later in the day, and pre-morning? It was not so pretty (what? I've been busy! At least I kept up with the dishes. Shut up!). And then at around 11:30 I left to head towards Chinatown, where I met up with Kaisha, with whom I had a whole fabulous day planned. We started by heading to dim sum (which is quickly becoming the best-documented event on my blog), which, as usual, was excellent. We then headed to Coquitlam, to go to this store; we went because I am quickly succumbing to the scrapbooking bug, and because this is where Kaisha, who makes incredible scrapbooks, goes all the time (she grew up in Coquitlam, so she's been going there for ages). And let me tell you, it was well worth the trip. We spent about an hour and a half in there (it's a big store, relative to any other scrapbooking store. That is, it's not huge), although a lot of that time was spent looking for various things (the layout is a little labyrinthine). We also asked the salespeople a lot of questions. I have to say though, the guy on shift was incredibly helpful. The two of us had been harrassing him for the past hour, and as he was ringing my purchases in, this conversation transpired:

Helpful Guy(As he rings in my paper trimmer - $35.99)
"You know, soon we'll have beginner's packs out"

Kaisha
"Oh, J-Bird, you should get that, it comes with a paper trimmer. When is soon?"

Helpful Guy
"Like later this week. But I can just put one together for you now if you want. It contains a paper trimmer, photo squares, a glue stick, scissors, a pencil, a pen, and 25% off another purchase of your choice for $50"

J-Bird
"Is...that a good deal?"

Kaisha
"Yeah, it totally is. You should get it"

J-Bird
"Okay, can I do that?"

Helpful Guy
"Sure! I'll just go grab everything for you."

He then proceeded to run around the store for ten minutes gathering my beginner's pack components, and then waited for another 5 minutes while Akaisha and I tried to decide what my "25% off" purchase should be. I was pretty impressed that after having to deal with us for that long, and having the opportunity to get rid of us quickly, he still took the time to offer me the better deal, and then put it all together. I mean, I know that's how salespeople are supposed to be, but let's be honest; how often does that actually happen? So go to Clipper Street, people. It's a good place.

After that, we headed for a quick stop to IKEA, where I purchased some bed linens. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep them, though. For one, I'm dubious about the colour; I love the colour itself, but it may have some problems coordinating with the rest of my room. Also, they're for my current bed, which is a twin, and I'm hoping to upgrade to something bigger soon.

And finally, we went to the Ronald McDonald House, and carved pumpkins with the kiddies there. So much fun! I love good days.

It's Been A While

So I've clearly fallen behind on the posting front. Anyway, here's a quick rundown of what's been going on...

I went to a formal at Science World, and thanks to J (for the dress) and Jason (for the fab hair) I looked amazing. Science World, people. It's good party times.

I turned 22. The day started off a little shaky; within 5 minutes of my being 22, I managed to fall and sprain my ankle (no, I was not drunk. I was leaving my house to drive my brother home). But ended quite well; I went to dim sum (yum!) with one of my babies, got nice phone calls from other babies and friends, and hung out with T for the first time in ages. I also received some very cute emails and ecards - Thanks!

My babies are no longer babies! It's was perfect and sweet and now I'm baby-less and sad. Except we all know they'll always be my babies. I love them.

And my parents get home on Thursday. Which means no more random food/starvation for me; I get mom food again! Quite excited.

Anyway, that about wraps it. Sorry this is so choppy; I spent the morning writing an essay, and now I'm all written out. I promise better quality next time.

Studying and Basketball

Phew. I'm in the middle of studying for a midterm, but as the textbook is so stultifyingly boring, this is a welcome break. So how is everyone? I think you should all leave a comment telling me about one exciting thing that's happened to you in the past week. In the spirit of getting it all started, I'm going to tell you all about the basketball game I played lately.

Yes, basketball. I knowm who actually plays basketball once they're finished high school? The last time I'd really played (beyond the PE teacher-mandated activities) was before then, in elementary school. But the sorority, for the first time in known history, has a basketball team. And after one of my babies quickly explained the rules (yes, we were that rusty; elementary school was ten years ago, people) we did quite well, routing the other team 40-16. Granted, the aforementioned new girl scored 20 of our 40 points, but still, it was a solid team effort. And hilarious. The refs clearly thought we were all morons, which we...can't really fault them for. Heh. Can't wait til the next game.

Alright, back to the studying. Anyone reading this, please, please avoid Clinical Psychology at UBC. The textbook alone is like paper boredom. Ugh. Back I go.