Aaaaaaarrrrrrrrrgggggggg

613*
613
613
613
613
613
613
613

No matter how many giant yellow stickies I put on the receiver handle of my phone. No matter how many giant yellow stickies I put in the cradle of the phone. No matter that I have a third giant yellow sticky covering the dial pad so that I have to lift it up to dial, my sad, sad little habit-ridden brain cannot seem to dial - what is it??? O yah. 613.

For those who don't live here, we now have to dial the area code when calling locally. Like across the street, or from work to home. If you forget, you get a 72 minute message reminding you, IN BOTH OFFICIAL LANGUAGES. Then they read the entire Canadian census report to you plus recite the Bible backwards in Swahili and read the Canadian Constitution in slow motion and THEN they complete your call. My nightmares are filled with THAT LADY'S voice.

Whooaaaahhhhhh 2 days in a row....

Posting! Just thought I'd like to mark my Eight Week Anniversary! Yup, there are 8 weeks of sparkly smiley faces on my calendar at home, and sparkly stars on my calendar at work. That means eight weeks of weekday gym-going. I'm even starting to see a few paltry muscles showing up when I wear sleeveless tops or skirts. WhooHoo!

I bet I could beat you in an arm wrestle...

Long Lost Blogger...

When SeanieO writes elaborate comments about my absense, and wonder of wonders, my FATHER posts a comment on my blog (after leaving messages on every other communication device I own), it's time to check in and face the music for being MIA*. I went from having 0 jobs to having 2 jobs, and my blogging is suffering. I leave the house usually around 6:45 am and return often around 12 or 12:30 am, sometimes with a quick stop-in to feed the cats and scoop their boxes (I know, my life is sooo glamourous, eat your heart out) before heading out again to some function or another.

My poor dad - he's so calm and easy-going, that you never know that he's thinking you're dead in a ditch somewhere. My mom would call and leave a message like "O MY GOD WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU I KNOW YOU ARE DEAD IN AN ALLEY I'M CALLING THE FBI". My dad on the other hand leaves a message like "Hey, good race time! Call me sometime..." Doesn't betray urgency... I'm not good at picking up on subtlety I see... Poor old dad. :-)

The good news however, is that even while the black hole (or should I say red hole) of my visa eats my "double" paycheck (not), I have not missed a single weekday at the gym. This is week 8. Even the day I had the breakfast meeting at 7:45 am. I got up at 5:30 and went. Even the day I slept over at a friend's due to a conference. I got up early and went for a run. I know. Who is this person and what have you done with the REAL Kim?!?!?!

Bruise Season has begun, as the hill opened 2 weeks ago. I have my first mountain biking bruise, and it's a goody. The sad part is I don't have a good story to go along with it - I don't even know how it happened. Perhaps I've started blocking out the trauma related to downhilling. :-)

I promise to keep you better posted, and let you know how the rides go.
xoxo

*No, seanieo, not the Ethiopian rap star.

Happy Anniversary!!!!

"This weekend marks the third anniversary of equal marriage in Canada. On June 10, 2003, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled in favour of equal marriage and ordered the province to begin issuing civil marriage licences to same-sex couples. This ruling paved the way for equal marriage rights across Canada.

“Over 10,000 marriage licences have been issued to same-sex couples since June 10, 2003,” said Kaj Hasselriis, National Spokesperson of Canadians for Equal Marriage. “That’s over 20,000 people. They’ve had large elaborate weddings and small intimate ones. They’ve been married at city halls, wedding halls, and in churches and synagogues. They’ve brought friends and families together. These weddings were all special, but they’ve also become commonplace.”

Canadians for Equal Marriage

BOOKS: It's Been Awhile...

UPDATE BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE COMPLAINING: No soccer (missed it), no Bytowne (missed the one I wanted, other one sold out), steamed milk at coffee shop was grossening and forgot my book, realized too broke to buy a treat (I was going to buy a certain CD that appeared on Go this morning ). So there. I am a black cloud of grumpiness. Don't TRY to cheer me up. I would like to wallow damn it.
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I finished Generation X some time ago, and thoroughly, completely enjoyed it. Now I'm reading Open by Lisa Moore - short stories. I usually get bored of a short story collection half way through, but this one I still look forward to picking up again and again. Her writing is awesome.

My Saturday is weird. First, super-fun plans for Sat - yay! Then, plans unexpectedly cancelled. Boo. But, it's opening weekend at Fortune (mountain biking) yay! Then, it's pouring rain. Boo.
Now? Dunno. Read I guess, drink tea, find somewhere to catch a soccer game maybe, maybe treat myself to a double-bill at the Bytowne since yesterday was my six-week anniversary of the gym. I haven't missed a day, even when I had to get up early to go at 6 am due to a 7:45 am breakfast seminar. I deserve a me-day and maybe a new book, or some sort of treat. xoxo

Fevah!

Happy First Day of World Cup!!!

May your team do well, but not better than mine.

Whoo hoo! Looking forward to a month of soccer watching. I realized today that this means that it's been 4 years since I was in India and Bangladesh. Un-beee-lievable. Seems like I just got back. Slightly depressing... Onwards!

Pride in My Heritage

This pic was sent to me by my grandmother.

The apple doesn't fall far from the tree... I'm so proud.

My Kitchen Has Been Used…

and she feels dirty. She’s like a pampered 19^th century daughter in a Jane Austin novel, who’s only job is to look pretty and appear accomplished, and now she has been used to satisfy the whim of some low class stable boy who waltzes through town only once every couple of months.

I have cooked my world famous Double Crust Salsa Black Bean Pie. To celebrate the occasion and to reassure my poor kitchen I will show you my favorite magnet, which sticks prettily on my fridge.

Happy Convocation...

...to the smartest, prettiest girl to ever crunch numbers!!!!!

Enjoy your day, you earned it!

Lotsa luv,
xoxo

PMO gag order over Mountie wedding; Tory MPs have been told to zip their lips if asked about constables' same-sex marriage next month

By Bruce Cheadle, The Canadian Press

The Prime Minister's Office has warned Conservative MPs not to comment on the marriage next month of two gay RCMP constables. The gag order went to all MPs but was aimed at "the small minority who might say something stupid," said one caucus member.

It's just the latest in a concerted effort by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to control and limit his new government's public message track. And it follows party strategists' successful suppression during the election campaign of outspoken social conservatives whose opinions might have harmed the party's climb to power.

Now the marriage of RCMP constables Jason Tree and David Connors in Yarmouth, N.S., appears to be causing some unease in the PMO. Sandra Buckler, Harper's director of communications, was not available for comment yesterday. But several Conservative MPs quietly confirmed they had received the PMO gag order about the Mountie wedding.

Conservatives will likely insist this is simply a matter of sticking to the government's core priorities."It's always the role of a government to communicate its own message," said Harper in Vancouver, responding in French to a question about his picayune standoff with the parliamentary press gallery over who gets to decide who asks questions at news conferences.

"It is the government that has the right to communicate with the population." Ian Brodie, Harper's chief of staff, has warned cabinet ministers that if they stray off message they face an escalating scale of sanctions, ranging from public humiliation to removal from cabinet. Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay and Industry Minister Maxime Bernier have already felt the sting.

But Harper's preoccupation with message control extends far beyond his frontbench. Maverick MP Garth Turner went public early in February with accounts of being sternly dressed down by Harper for speaking out on David Emerson's Liberal defection. Saskatchewan MP Garry Breitkreuz, a party stalwart and longtime leading advocate of scrapping the federal long-gun registry, was ordered not to talk with reporters about federal gun legislation in advance of last week's amnesty announcement by Public Security Minister Stockwell Day.

General Rick Hillier, the Chief of Defence Staff, went so far as to publicly deny published reports last month that he'd been muzzled, although the blunt-spoken Newfoundlander has avoided public comment ever since.

On Wednesday night in Calgary, Justice Minister Vic Toews insisted all questions be screened in advance during a town hall discussion on the government's get-tough-on-crime bill.

Bliss

Can I just take this moment to say how much I adore Snyder's Cheddar Cheese Pretzel Pieces? I love them.
Thank you for listening.

Who is this person and what have you done with the REAL Kim?

I ran today. Saturday. Didn't have to... In the rain... Weird.