Do guys care about having visible manpanty lines??

You never really see them on men.

On the bus this morning, there was this fairly built guy wearing somewhat form fitting sweatpants. They looked like nice pants. But they were also quite tight on his buns. I couldn't help but wonder what kind of underwear he was wearing...or if he was wearing any at all. I didn't get a chance to check out the front to hazard a guess. BWAHAHAHA

That also reminds me...what is worse? A guy wearing extreme low rider jeans where he pretty much needs to hold his pants up to keep them up *and* where his undies are raggedy old and thin (I'm talking practically see-through). I just remember seeing this young man and thinking he needed new underwear if he ws going to show them off like that.

Or...

A girl wearing extremely tight white pants with a dimply butt?

Which is less attractive? 

I had to run for the bus this morning and yesterday, too! My body is not ready for running yet. My chest feels like I've been smoking a lot of weed, which I haven't!! I was hoping to get in a few workouts on the cruise this weekend, but I probably should let me body rest if I am still feeling like this! BOOOO!

I might do some a light warm up so I can do some stretching though. I haven't stretched in almost a week, and it makes such a big difference! I feel like my posture is suffering, too.

I guess I will be seeing Mr. Sexy-Strict bus driver for a while. Today, battled with another student who wasn't paying the correct fare, but he also reminded people sitting in the courtesy seats that an old man getting on the bus needed a seat. *swoon*

Smallville premier -It was okay. I didn't remember much from last season's finale so I was a little lost

The Office premier - Oh, yeah, baby! I hope Costco will be carrying Season 3 for me to purchase!

Grey's Anatomy premier - Disappointing. Last season was a huge disappointment. The storyline I hate most is the Izzy-George one. It is completely ridiculous and their "love" just came out of nowhere! I mean seriously...Izzy was all over Denny, and even after he died. But months later, Izzy is in love with George. George was in love with Meredith for 3 seasons, gets married to someone else, and all of a sudden he is in love with Izzy, too? Give me a break. And Dr. Karev needs to remove his facial hair.

And my dad is back in town from his trip to China. He says he bought me perfume. I rarely wear perfume, and I rarely buy it. The Agent Provocateur stuff was an exception. Not only am I really sensitive to scents (it took me a while to clue in while I was sneezing all day one time when I wore perfume), but I get bored of scents really easily. I've never finished a bottle. The last time my dad bought me perfume, I don't think I even used it. First off, I didn't really like the scent. Second, it was Tommy Girl. I have boycotted anything Tommy Hilfiger since the mid-90s.

Anyway, my dad thought I collected perfume...I collected perfume in their mini-sized bottles when I was in high school, yes.

I guess it's the thought that counts. 

I just found out that users can send out guest passes from Flickr!! Now my friends don't need to sign up to see my private photos!! Woo!!

And I also just sent an email to our Events Coordinator about not going on the shopping bus. I hope it's not too late, and I hope it wouldn't be an inconvenience. I thought about it some more, and not only do I not have a lot of money to throw around on shopping, but there are other parts of Seattle that I would rather see! Like Macy's and the Pike Place Market and Sephora!

If you're from out of town, you can always get an 11% discount at Macy's on a lot of stuff. You can be an American visiting another state or you could be an international visitor! Just go to the gift wrap or visitor services department, depending on the store. Americans can use that discount for 5 days. International visitors can use that discount for 30 days! I am hoping to look at shoes, clothes for work, se7en jeans, and undies! Woo! 

My bus driver was hot today...not really in looks but I always have a thing for men who can take control of a situation. All in all, I wouldn't want to mess with the driver I had today!

He went after people who didn't t pay proper fare. He gave a general warning during the ride that he could check fare if you hadn't paid full fare (when you cross the city line, you have to pay a 2-zone fare). And at the last stop before we crossed the line, he got out of his seat and went up to the guy sitting behind me.

The guy didn't seem to understand what was going on. There could have been a language barrier, but the bus driver says, "if you took off your headphones, you'd be able to hear me!" Anyway, the guy finally got the point that he needed to pay more fare, but he was still like, "no, no, no". I am not sure what was going on.

And then when we're merging onto the bridge, this minivan driver didn't seem to want to let the bus driver go, but I saw the minivan window go down, and the bus driver goes, "it's a merging lane, IDIOT!" And then there was an exchange of words, and the driver is like "you wanna go?? Do you wanna go?? Huh? Do you?" and "well, yeah? Come get a job! We're hiring!"

There are a couple of women on the bus that I always see: one is always looking really fashionable, but today, she was wearing this long pointy toque. It's still too warm to be wearing a toque, but her toque reminded me of a dunce cap. What was she thinking? And this other woman wears thick, yet natural looking makeup but her hair is really big and really frizzy...like she doesn't comb it or use any styling product. I can never take my eyes off her hair!

Last night, I think I watched about 4 hours of TV?? I have cut out Criminal Minds and Private Practice off my show to watch. For Wednesdays, it's America's Next Top Model, Back to You, Dirty Sexy Monday, and Bionic Woman (for now...the premier was kind of lame but the show has gotten good reviews).

I lashed out again last night even though I tried to keep it to myself. Mr. Nick and I were on the phone, and I was trying to end the conversation and hang up. I said, "I'm going to go now, "and he kept trying to keep the conversation going! I am able to get jealous, but I never really want to show it. It started when he mentioned he might be going out for coffee with a female colleague last night so he could give her some advice on long-term disability. I had dryly said, "how nice," but it did bother me that he made this special effort to do some research about her troubles and then to meet with her coffee to discuss it. (I said, "I didn't know you were so knowledgeable about long-term disability." He said, "I'm not, but I did some research.")  I didn't want to say anything because in reality, I'm positive he was being his usual nice-guy self, and it was nothing, and it's not like I would ever forbid him to do anything. [Which is why I just wanted to hang up and do something else. I ended up telling him what was bothering me, we exchanged some heated words, especially after he said to me, "it's no big deal!" It made me even more mad that he diminished my concerns. But later on, he called me back, and we talked about it. But I don't really feel like we made up.]

On the other hand...he got jealous that a coworker said he was going to burn me a DVD movie. And from my personal experiences, guys are never nice to women just because. There is always an attraction and there is always an ulterior motive (even though it may not be conscious). Taken guys who forge strong "friendships" with women after they become taken always end up falling for the women or something happens. And single guys who have friendships with women and realise that it will be nothing more almost always disappear.

These have been my experiences...Therefore, it's reality! :-p BWAHAHAA

I have very few guy friends now. Guy friends I've had have cheated on their girlfriends, fiancees, and wives -- either with me or other women. Maybe it's the company I've kept, but nonetheless, I've known a lot of unfaithful men. I do trust Mr. Nick, but I can't always curb the jealousy!

I finished watching the rest of my Six Feet Under. The series finale was great! I cried.

I finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I am sad the series has come to an end. I probably cried. I don't remember. But that was my favourite book of them all. I think I will even buy it!

This new season of shows has been overwhelming! My digital cable box can't handle it, and I doubt my VCR will be able to either. I can have my digital box change to the channel when the show is on. It's perfect when I need to tape my shows and I'm not around. However, the box can only handle 8 shows in its memory at all times.

This is what I am watching:

Monday: Heroes, Chuck (kind of a cute show)

Tuesday: Gossip Girl (kind of interesting but I find the subject matter a little disturbing), Beauty and the Geek (as much as I"ve liked the previous seasons, I might have to nix it), and Cane (lots of potential!)

Wednesday: Back to You (only half an hour, thank goodness), America's Next Top Model, Dirty Sexy Money, Private Practice, Criminal Minds. I think there is one other show. But at least after I watch the first episode, I can decide what I don't want to keep watching. 

I really want to make marshmallows. 

Is it really true about what happens to people during the full moon?? Does anyone have any full moon stories?

The next full moon is tomorrow. My cousin said that effects are really felt three days before, which in this week's case would have been Sunday. Sunday was the day I went crazy!! 

The other morning I was talking to my mom, and she mentioned she went shopping at Costco with my aunt (my dad's older sister).

She said to me..."your aunt said she talked to you and you got *really* mad when she talked about marriage!" I laughed with satisfaction. "Your aunt said she probably shouldn't bring it up again, and I agreed with her."

So no more marriage talk. But I think my aunt will still try to weasel in there because I talked to her the night before my mom told me this. My aunt still asked, "How is Mr. Nick?" like she always does. I had braced myself for more questions, but she just left it at that! 

Ugh! I'm getting this cough with my cold, too! 

So now I am home, sick...with a fridge full of food that I won't be able to taste. Last night, for dinner there was a roasted lemon rosemary chicken with onions and potatoes, steamed purple cauliflower, stir fried green beans with bacon bits, pesto lemon pepper bread, and apple crisp.

There are also pear silver dollar pancakes in the fridge. 

I had the worst emotional day ever yesterday. I still need to figure out what will help with me being all emotional right before Aunt Flo comes. I couldn't stop crying! I was so upset! I guess not getting enough sleeping and still having all that caffeine in my body didn't help. I could hardly think straight.

Like I said, Mr. Nick woke me up at 7, so I was out of bed at 7:30. I didn't eat anything because I was going to wait until he was up before making pancakes. And I didn't want to do anything too noisy as to not wake him. I was pretty hungry, but then it passed. We ended up eating breakfast around 11. I was actually quite mad by then...for no real reason except that I felt like I was waiting all morning to cook him breakfast, and he didn't really do much to help. 

By the time we finished breakfast and the dishes, I was really really tired, so I told Mr. Nick I was going to take a nap. He asked me how long. I told him he could go home for his bike ride, but he said he'd go to the mall for a bit after his shower. While he was showering, I was sleeping lightly, and when he left about half an hour later, he woke me up, and I couldn't get back to sleep.

I had also lent him my keys, thinking he'd be back around an hour. So...three hours later he comes back. I had called him about a half hour before he came back because I was livid. Him not answering his phone made me even more livid! I wanted to know when he was coming back. I was stranded in my own home! I need my key fob to get in and out of my building. I cried some more. (Sagittarians need their freedom!!) Not only was I stuck at home, but I felt like I hadn't really hung out with my boyfriend all weekend.

Luckily, he didn't hear my voice mail message...I was quite upset. I did tell him in person what I said on the phone, though. I just didn't want him to hear how upset I was. When he came home, I knew he hadn't heard my message because he was quite cheerful. Meanwhile, I was drawing a bath, and then I burst into tears! He probably thought I was crazy.

But I had all these pent up emotions from the beginning of the weekend. I felt like he didn't want to hang out when I dropped by his place after work Friday, and then I felt like he didn't want to hang out before we out with his friends Saturday night.

Often, I need some time to warm up again to Mr. Nick if I haven't seen him in a couple of days, if we haven't had any physical contact,  or if I've been upset about something and haven't completely let it go. Saturday night, I felt like I was sleeping next to a stranger. He doesn't like when I tell him he's like a stranger to me. But I can't help it! I can't sleep next to people I'm not at ease with!

At one point he said he was thinking of going for a bike ride on Sunday. The part where he doesn't usually plan anything for us to do really bugs me, so I guess the part that bugged me was -- when we were going to hang out on the weekend? In the wee hours of Sunday morning (we had another one of our late-night "discussions"), I also told him I felt like all I was doing Sunday was cooking for him, and that thought didn't appeal to me. When Sunday actually rolled around, I felt like that again because I woke up, was up for hours being quiet,  cooked him breakfast, was stuck at home for hours waiting for him to come home, and then it was close to time to start dinner.

I was so bummed I just wanted to sulk (I really felt like my whole day was wasted), but we ended up going for a walk to this really small park. It was all set up for the Chinese Mid Autumn Festival, and that all these huge lanterns set up every where. The walk really lifted my spirits.

We had our dinner, but I couldn't eat much of it because I was feeling ill. The apple crisp was quite delightful. It was topped with an oatmeal topping. He did the dishes (he usually does when cook :-)), and then we went to bed. I was so tired! 

I think in the last 2 months, I have seen all my high school exes. Some I hadn't seen in like 10 years. WEIRD. I thought I saw my 2nd high school boyfriend at the supermarket earlier this weekend. I hightailed it out of there, but I'll send him a Facebook message.

I'm fighting a cold right now. It seems like every time I go out with wet hair, I get sick. I should have learned my lesson last time. Now is not the time to get sick!

And I had tea yesterday. I went for afternoon tea. Oh how I love the tea at that farm house, but I knew there'd be side effects. I was still wired at 2:30 in the morning. It took me a while to fall asleep, and then Mr. Nick woke me up at up 7 when he went to the bathroom. I couldn't get back to sleep after that. Sometimes when I thought I was falling asleep, I'd get all excited and wake myself back up! Grr!

Being awake is not the way to get better! And I can hardly focus. I'm still all caffeinated up! I hope this wears off in a couple of days. 

I've signed up for the Shopping Bus during the corporate retreat. Basically, it's a bus that will take us from the pier to a big shopping centre. I've been confirmed, but now a new email was sent out saying that people have asked about going to the outlet mall instead. And we had to reply with where we wanted to go. If we end up going to the outlets, I will ask if I can cancel!

I want to be able to do some other sightseeing...And the outlet mall would mean a whole other hour of traveling. As much as I like to buy things, I am not a fan of shopping. I know what I want before I go, and I buy it. There is a reason why I do so much research about where I'm going! I think if we don't go to the outlets, I will have about 2 hours to do other sightseeing. I don't want to lose any more time!

There are some things I don't usually blog about, but I probably would if nobody read my blog. If you're not ready for too much information, you should probably skip this one!

An ex...I guess you could him that although we were never official...has finally revealed who his girlfriend is on Facebook. I think there is a photo of her in one of his albums. The album is "People" and there's only her in it. When I saw it, I thought "she looks so nice. I wonder if that's <insert gf's name>." (I only think she looks like a nice person because she is charmingly smiling into the camera...minimal makeup and reminds me of my old nice coworker.). Too bad her profile isn't public.

Anyway, when this ex of mine (the tall J Man if you recall from my 2004-2005 blogging days) and started talking again after a period of no contact, he was telling me about this girl he had been seeing. (oh, some history...this guy and I dated for almost a year. I really liked him, but we never had "the talk", and while I was dating him, I dated others, too. Then he failed my Valentine's Day test, and instead of telling him I didn't want to see him anymore, I told him that I couldn't sleep with him anymore. I told him this the day after Valentine's Day as I was leaving his place.) This girl...he broke up with her because he wasn't physically attracted to her anymore!

He did change his mind, obviously, because they are still together. But when I look at her small profile picture, all I can think is...she's not overweight?! But I wonder more is how the sex is for her...BWAHAHAA I often referred to him as Johnny TwoPumps, and no, Johnny is not his name. My pleasure was never part of the equation, but I must thank him for my Pocket Rocket. That toy still beats all my other ones, HANDS DOWN!

I almost forgot about this, but last year on this day, I wrote myself a letter. I sent it through www.futureme.org . You can say anything you want to yourself, and you choose a day, and your letter gets sent to you.

So I got my e-mail today! I won't share the details, but I do love that I signed off "love you" BWAHAHAA

My pillows have already been shipped! I ordered them through www.pacificpillows.com . They carry a lot of luxury hotel linens and pillows and accessories. Their service has been excellent so far! I just wish I could have taken advantage of their 50% discount! I'm glad I Googled for their coupons. At least I saved 10%! And unfortunately, their free shipping coupon didn't apply to me either.

The Canadian and American dollar are on par today! This milestone hasn't been met since before I was born. As much as I like to keep my spending to the homeland, buying things at American prices is extremely attractive.

My Stila foundation is around $45 a bottle, I think. In the US, it's $41ish. Every dollar counts! If I am lucky, the Canadian dollar will keep going up for a bit. I wonder if I should exchange some money (or a lot) to use when the dollar goes back down. I'm tempted to take a trip to Vegas after I get my IATA card!!

I am kind of kicking myself...well, not really. Several years ago, my aunt gave me a huge sum of American money (in cash). I didn't want to spend it, and I didn't want to convert it to Canadian money. Since our dollar was so low at the time, I wanted to hang on to the money in US funds instead. Had I exchanged it for Canadian money, I could exchange it back and made about 40% on it today. *sigh* Oh well. Had I exchanged it for Canadian money, I probably would have spent it all. But instead, I am spending the money now, but only when I go to the States. I guess that is okay.

I ordered my pillows! Unfortunately, the 50% off coupon code expired a couple of weeks ago :( But I did get 10% off which is better than a kick in the pants. The cost of shipping is almost the cost of two pillows though. Ouch! I can't wait to get them! 

For the longest time, I've wanted to buy some Martex Brentwood pillows. I slept on them in a hotel in Portland, Oregon, and really loved them.

When I did a search on the Internet, it seemed there was no way to get them because I'm not an American resident. Anyway, with the Canadian dollar almost on part with the American dollar, I figured I would try again. I used the online chat option at this Web site, and asked the person if there was any way a Canadian could get some of those pillows.

The Web site says they do not ship outside of the USA and the shipping address must match the credit card billing address. (There's a service in Washington near me where you can have things shipped there and they hold it for you. I thought I might have been able to use that service. I can't. I probably could for other online stores that offer discounts only to Americans...Anyway, it would be just a short drive across the border for me.)

But the CSR told me that they only don't accept online orders that ship outside the USA. I wish they had said that on the Web site, unless they would rather not deal with shipping elsewhere? She said I could send an email to Customer Service and place an order, and that they accept only Paypal. Time to fire off an email!

I keep wanting some rich hot chocolate or some really creamy delicious milk chocolate. I'm eating some creme egg Dairy Milk right now, and it's just not doing it for me!!

10 more days and I will be on the corporate retreat. I am sure it will be a good time, but everyone keeps saying how it's just one big party and how everyone gets totally smashed. I am a little nervous about that since I don't drink (I swear the older I get, the more pressure I feel to drink :-/ ). I also don't have much interest in staying up all night every night either! The day I get back is also the night of Chris Cornell. I already know that is going to be a late night!! So I actually wouldn't mind getting some rest on the trip.

I already don't get enough sleep. During the week, I get maybe 6 hours of sleep a night, at the most. I doze on the bus, but I can't really sleep since I worry about falling out of my seat. I just want some rest! Maybe this coming Sunday, I can get some. I am getting up early Saturday to start my baking and shopping. I hope I'm not up too late Friday baking.

A coworker of mine who is half-Japanese says she takes Zantac so she can drink alcohol and not have the side effects set in as quickly.

We watched the premier of Back to You last night. It was funny! 

Food shopping during the week post-dinner time is a busy time at one of my supermarkets. It is also a time when they have fewer cashiers. If I can't make it right after work, I might as well wait another day.

There were 2 express lanes (12 items or less) open last night, and I was about 7th or 8th in line. BOTH lineups had customers with more than 12 items. One line had two customers that had full carts (not overflowing but at least twice the maximum number of items), so I went for the other. I ended up in the line where there was a problem with someone's purchase and the guy right in front of me had more than 12 items, too.

GRR!

I wish cashiers would send customers with more than the max number of items to the back of the line...or punish them some way!! Customers wouldn't (or shouldn't) complain about being treated poorly if they were kicked out of line for not being respectful of other customers! 

I keep putting him on the back burner with weekday lunches because other people make plans with me. I don't really want to go out for lunch more than once every two weeks or so. But today, a coworker asked me...so when can we drag you out for lunch again? I passed on the last two because the first one was expensive and the last one coincided with my deadline.

And now The Godmother has suggested going for lunch next week so we can do an exchange. It will have been almost 3 months since I started my job and working 2 blocks away from Mr. Nick!!

Oooh, the exchange...I got this great deal at Costco. They are carrying $250 worth of gift cards for this spa, but they cost only $200!! (well, $199.99...for 5 $50 gift cards). I'm splitting some with The Godmother.

It always stresses me out when I am not free to plan my own schedules. Yesterday, I wanted to make 4 stops after work. I was only able to make one! Going to Costco took longer than expected. The produce place was already closed. And I didn't have time to visit the other two supermarkets before I had to meet my mom for dinner.

I also wanted to get home in time to shower by the time the Big Brother finale came on (Where was Daniele's boyfriend??). AFter dinner I was only able to stop by one supermarket, which didn't have a lot of what i needed!

So now I have to make those two stops today...right after work and be done before 7 because Mr. Nick is coming over. I have about 45 minutes...

This will also be another night where I can't return phone calls...it takes me days to call people back because if I don't have time to call them after work, I can't call them at all! Some people can't take calls after 8 or 9 pm. One of my best friends and her mom called me on Sunday...I might be able to call them back this weekend? I also make my calls when I know I don't have to be anywhere, so I don't have to cut the phone call short, but that is almost impossible sometimes.

I always try to do as much as I can during the week so I can free up my time for Mr. Nick on the weekends. But this weekend is going to be one cooking frenzy!! I plan on baking cookies, carrot cake, and apple crisp. I'm also doing a roast! I'll have more me-time once ski season starts. But I am still going to be bummed that Mr. Nick won't be around as much. I hope I don't get resentful about working around his schedule. If I didn't work around his schedule, I'd never make time for him.

I'm not too crazy about people invading my personal space on the bus, so I always find it strange that people don't mind sitting ass to ass or on top of one another.

Whenever I get a window seat, I always cringe when I think someone larger than me is going to squish down beside me. I like to have a gap between our legs! Okay, I understand if there is going to be a brushing of the thighs, but I really don't like someone's arm resting on me.

Yesterday, this older, bigger woman sat on me as she sat down in the seat. She was wearing way too much old woman, powdery perfume, and then she pulled out her book to read. I was uncomfortably mashed up against the window. If I sat up straight, I was squished right beside her. I don't think she raised the armrest so her buttcheek could hang off the seat a little. GRR! This has been my *most* uncomfortable ride to date.

Luckily, whenever the bus made a really wide turn in the correct direction, I was able to shuffle over the millimeters of space I could recover. But still...

And the fall temperatures are really starting to set in. It seems like tights and boots and skirts are in for the fall. I have resisted my junior high trends all along. But the tights are tempting since it's a short walk from the bus stop to my destination. But I just feel so wrong going back to the fashions I wore in my early teens. And I am liking a lot of the ankle boots I see! 

I've made some sort of contact with all the high school boyfriends I've ever had this year. I guess yesterday was the last of the bunch!!

I was food shopping yesterday (the store that I used to like so much now licks. All they have is fruit and starchy vegetables. What they hey?), and out of the corner of my eye, I saw someone looking at me. Then I realised it was my very first boyfriend. His style has totally gone Taiwanese. What the heck happened? He had the big frizzy hair. And I thought he was taller? I think he was food shopping with his fiancee.

Anyway, we went out for a month in the summer when I was 15. We never even kissed, and I dumped him over the phone. He hated me after that. He was mean to me for the rest of high school, and avoided even making eye contact with me in university. The only thing I have to thank him for is introducing me to computers. The fall following the breakup, I got a 386!

Silly me...I left my credit card at a restaurant in the mountains.

I don't know when I will get it back! Mr. Nick and I went out for dinner a really nice dinner Saturday night, and after I paid with my credit card, I didn't take it with me! The restaurant did call me super late that night, but we were already sleeping, and I didn't recognise the number so I didn't pick up. They didn't leave a message either!

Anyway, the next day I realised my credit card wasn't in my wallet, and I realised what I had done. Unfortunately, the restaurant wasn't open yesterday or today. I wish I hadn't left my credit card behind, and I wish they would have called me earlier! That means I won't be able to talk to anyone there tomorrow, and I am going to ask them to mail it to me.*sigh* I feel naked without, but I don't think I will need it for now.

I am sore from ATVing though!! It was a lot of fun. Yesterday we did this advanced tour and went on a few trails. I've done ATV tours before but were geared more towards beginners, which meant a lot of slow traveling but higher views to look at. We did a few trails, and some were rather rocky and bumpy. I preferred to go quickly over those!! The controls weren't really made for small hands, so my thumb got really sore (thumb controls the gas), and a sore thumb meant a really jerky ride for me!

I've gotten myself all psyched to get a new camera...I've hated my camera ever since I got it. It's slow and the night shots are horrible! And then I started getting excited about having a new toy even if it's not in my current budget!

But I took my camera to the repair shop this morning, and the camera is fine. The guy just forced the shutter open and then after that, everything was good to go. I guess whatever sand was in there dried and loosened up or something. He said to bring it back if I heard any grinding noises.

So...I don't *need* a new camera right now! So that is good...I guess...*L* 

I found the photos! I'd better burn them to CD ... again?

My body is tired, and I am very much looking forward to the weekend. There will be some ATVing action!! YEEEEAH!

You know what gets my goat? People who give TV show updates in their Facebook profiles! I am tired of finding out what happens before I get to watch it!! Maybe it was a blessing in disguise because I will be accidentally taping over Thursday's episode of Big Brother 8 before I watch it. I watched 15 minutes of it yesterday and then I had to leave. But I forgot to put a new tape into the VCR for taping Sunday's show!!!!! GRR!

I've also started my TV show watching and taping schedule for the fall. Thankfully, I don't need to do any juggling next week! And I am so glad I can get the east coast feeds. What a luxury! (What I really need is a PVR...) 

For the life of me, I cannot seem to find 3 months' worth of photos in my CD wallet right now. I hope I had actually burned those photos and the CD is sitting somewhere at home :( :( :( :(

I have some of the photos uploaded at Photobucket, but if I can't find the originals, I am out about 500 photos :( :( :( :(

I have over 6600 uploaded right now...Moving on to 2005! I think I took more photos when more of my friends didn't have digital cameras. But now that I know other people will be taking photos, I take fewer! 

The things I put up with...

Mr. Bridezilla's past co-worker works here (that's how I found out about my job). He's a nice guy and all but sometimes, he is a little abrasive. He's definitely very opinionated, and I hate when he tells me how I should be doing my job since he's a developer. Yesterday at our team meeting, each person had their chance to talk about what they'd been doing for the last month. I praised that co-worker A showed me something that would really speed up my work process, but Mr. Abrasive pipes up, "actually, *I* did that." And then I had to correct him in front of everyone that no...in fact, he did not. Mr. Abrasive didn't even know what I got help on. Geez...grow up.

I talked to my dad last night. It was his 60th birthday earlier this week, and he didn't want to celebrate or do anything. On a whim, he said he was going to be out of town. I think he lied about it. He has used that tactic before and he's told me to use it to when I want to avoid seeing people. Before he "left," I had called to ask him to let me know when he was coming back. Of course he didn't.

But last night, he told me he was leaving for a trip to China until the end of the month, and then he is leaving for Hong Kong for a few weeks in October. I am glad he is going to be out of my hair, but I really dislike how irresponsible he is about giving me his info. The last time he went to Hong Kong for 3 weeks, he didn't call me until two days before he was coming back to give me his phone number.

Ugh.

OH! And during this conversation, he asked me how things were going with Mr. Nick. Immediately, I got defensive (my aunt who is always telling me it's time for me to be married is my dad's older sister) and said, "we're not getting married." I don't really know what he was getting at, but he the conversation went something like this:

Dad: I'm not talking about marriage. So...what kind of plans do you have?
Me:  What do you mean what kind of plans?
Dad: You know, what kind of plans do you have?
Me: We're not getting married at this point in time.
Dad: Have you discussed this?
Me: Discussed what?
Dad: About moving in together?
Me: No, not at this point in time. [At this point, I could feel his disappointment]
Dad: Oh, so I guess you're not going to be starting a family any time soon.

WTF? Words really cannot express my frustration. I grew up with him forbidding me to date even when I was in university, and then when I was dating, he just kept hammering in that all men wanted was sex. Never mind, the fine example of a husband he set all my life. And all of a sudden I am supposed to just want the life he wanted? Geez!

My parents' plan for me went like this...go to school...finish school...work...meet a rich, successful, ambitious man on the job...get married...have kids. Live the life of a 60s woman.

I also let him have it about my aunt, and how I hated that every conversation with her was her telling me it was time to be married and be popping out babies.

@$%#! 

I need a slow song that is grind-worthy, about 4 minutes long. I found one that fit that criteria, but it's as really boring song. All the other good songs are just a little too short!!! GAAAAH!

The fast songs are the easy ones!

I am in the mood for some frosting. I'm still uploading Flickr pics by the thousands, and I have A LOT of food photos.

I think I want to get the Canon SD900. It's generally about $500. *sigh*  

Why do people make such a big deal about Britney Spears not wearing underwear?

Who cares??

And when is Hotmail going to be back up?? UGH! I guess it's no longer Hotmail anymore.

Saturday was a beautiful day. It was a really perfect day to get married. (I'm quite enjoying the sunny crisp September so far, too :))

The ceremony was short and sweet. And I cried.

The guy who did my hair was a loser. The makeup artist was great. And my dress didn't look as bad as I remembered. And thank you to whoever invented double-sided tape!!

I had schnitzel for the first time in my life. I got tan lines as a result of the days festivities. It was also really breezy at some points. Brrr!

The reception ended quite early, so there was a lot of dancing going on. There was a lot of shirtlessness going on, too. (All guys).

My feet still hurt.

It was a good event! I am glad I participated! (But yes, everything I did in preparation was torturous at times.) 

Mr. Nick's left town. I miss him already. I wonder how long that will last...

We had a fight last night. I'd post about it just for record's sake, but I don't really want to think about it. I am also too tired to think about it. I guess we made up, but I am still bummed. The fight reminded me of what Finalyfree pointed out to me. Other girlfriends have had the same experience, too. We'll be upset about something, and then we tell our men, and then they turn everything around, with the result them being upset and all that shizzle, and *we* end up apologising.

I asked him if we were okay, and he said he'd be okay in the morning after sleeping. I asked him what was wrong, and he said he was upset because I "made" him think about his ex. I've always been a little bothered by some of things he's said (in passing) about him and his ex. They were generally just too much information for me.

The massage thing has something that has bothered me a lot, and I have mentioned it to him before. He never really addressed it when I brought it up before so naturally, I'd bring it up again ;-) He had bragged that he built up some massage muscles because his ex really enjoyed them. From the time we've been together, he's massaged me for like 10 minutes, twice, and both times he complained. And there is a massage oil stain on the rug in his bedroom. Maybe it might sound petty to someone else, but the whole massage thing just really bothered me.

Of course everyone has a past, and the past is the past...but when I don't have any choice what I get to hear, and when he refuses to answer my questions about his past, that gets my goat. I mean, really...how fair is that? And what does he have to hide? I never talk about exes, and if I do, it's not an accident.

But what he did say about his ex and the nature of their relationship has probably (and hopefully) satisfied my curiosity. I was only hoping to learn something. 

Last night, a couple of my friends and I were talking about the slideshow for the upcoming wedding, and how I had more photos from a long weekend getaway we went on 10 years ago and 1 month ago. One of the girls was from Calgary, and she is going to be attending this wedding, too. I haven't seen her since then...with the "tent incident".

I doubt I'd go for more tent action now. I don't know it's because I'm older and less reckless or if it's because it'd be a been-there-done-that thing for me.

It was also another first for me 10 years ago around this time, but I'll just leave it at that. 

After this weekend, Bridezilla and Mr. Bridezilla's wedding will be OVER! Finally! I'm keeping those nicknames for them forever now. Yesterday was the rehearsal. It looks like I have a long walk. I hope I don't trip. I should have brought my heels to practise in on the grass! I am not really looking forward to dancing with my groomsman during the father-daughter dance because I have no idea where I'm supposed to put my hands!

The non-family bridesmaids aren't going to the post-wedding brunch. I thought this was something that the bride and groom were going to pay for, but no. I think of all the bridesmaids, I have spent the least. I almost feel guilty. But I guess I am not too choked about going to this because I didn't attend most of the pre-wedding festivities.

My approximate costs for this wedding:

Stagette #1 (gas): $10
Bridal shower (including food and gift): $130
Photos and CD for the slideshow: $5
Shoes: $40
Hair: $60
Gift: $150
Bra: $80
Brunch: $15-30
Wedding day breakfast: $10

I could have also spent:

Dress: $200
Stagette #2 (Vegas): $1000+
Stagette #3 (Winery tour & dinner): $50

I wonder if anyone is going to drive the wedding party that day. I know they didn't want to spend the money on a limo. This wedding has turned very costly for the couple, but I wonder where they are spending the money...? The bridesmaids feel like Bridezilla and Mr. Bridezilla haven't been all that thankful for any help and have cheaped out where it would have been nice to just spend the money.

Mr. Nick and I also "met" around this time last year. We did meet through an online dating site. He sent me a message a year ago today but we're not sure when I replied. *L* By the time I met him, I had really had enough of online dating. I was just about to stop doing it.

Every time I sent a message to someone, they'd never write back. I always wrote back to people who took the time to write me. The best guys were the ones who swear and make racial slurs at me if I told them I wasn't interested. The Internet sure makes people bold! 

The eggs in my fridge expired two days ago. How much time do I have left to eat those eggs and not worry about getting sick?? I am tired of buying eggs and thinking I have a month to eat them. In reality, I hardly eat eggs, and I use them for baking. If Mr. Nick stays over on the weekend, I might make eggs. However, we've been too busy to be eating breakfast at my home!

And my gym...there is this one exercise I do where I twist and throw a medicine ball against a wall. The only place where I can really throw anything against the wall at my gym is against this concrete wall in the back. A few weeks ago, the girl working at the gym told me I couldn't work out there because it was by the fire exit. Fair enough. I asked her what other wall I could use, so she told me to use the one by the group exercise floor. I knocked on it, and it was hollow. (These medicine balls aren't like the old school leather ones...they're like heavy basketballs.)

I decided that wall wouldn't be a good one. I need one that is an actual support structure. I decided I wanted to do this exercise again today since there was a group exercise class going on. I figured no one would catch me. But the girl working there just happened to walk by and told me that I couldn't work out there because I would be blocking the fire exit.

HOWEVER...they always have stuff back there...Boxes of toilet paper, tool box, ladder, laundry detergent, vaccuum. They've actually cleared out some of the stuff. There was almost no wall space at all the last time I was exercising there. So it kind of pissed me off that she was telling me I couldn't work out by the fire exit when they use that space as storage!!

So I asked her again where I could do that exercise. I told her I needed a wall for throwing a ball against. She said she didn't know. So I asked her if I could take the ball outside, and she didn't really want me to take it there. I told her I'd be quick and I went outside. But she really wasted my time. The least she could do was offer me an alternate plan if she wasn't going to let me use the wall I was already using.

And I do plan on doing that exercise again, but not when she is working.  

I finally got a chance to sleep on the bus today. Unfortunately it was one of those side seats and I kept waking up whenever I thought my bag was going to fall off my lap...or when my sunglasses were going to fall off my head...or when I drooled. It's going to be mean of me to say this, but oh well.

There was this woman on the bus that reminded me of a rodent, but not because she looked like one. She had this overbite and was chewing gum really quickly and with her mouth open. And she was reading something, but her whole head would move in the direction she was moving...so here was this woman looking back and forth and chewing feverishly with her mouth open.

The other morning I was looking at someone's fingernails on the bus, and it totally reminded me of this nail polish back in the day. I can't remember if it was geared towards kids, but the kicker was that you could peel off the nail polish when you didn't want it on any more! I had some of that stuff when I was younger, and it never peeled off in a sheet. Lame.

And we saw Superbad last night. I thought it wasn't really funny. In fact, it could have been classified as super bad. Har har har. There were a handful of moments that I thought were funny, but overall, I guess the humour was a little too juvenile for me. I hadn't seen any trailers for the movie, and I heard it was good, and I am a fan of Seth Rogen. I thought I would have liked it!

But I'll know better next time than to see a movie about high school kids trying to get alcohol so they can go to a party and get laid. I don't know if the guy playing Evan was supposed to purposely look like a bad actor. I just felt grossed out whenever they sexualised high school kids. Well, thinking back to when I was high school, I really shouldn't have been bothered by it, but I am old now, and anything sexual related to kids in high school grosses me out.

I do not find g-strings poking out of high school girls' pants sexy. I do not find focusing on a high school girl's cleavage a turn on. And I certainly don't have any interest in seeing high school girls undress, or watching a high school couple trying to get it on. GROSS GROSS GROSS EW EW EW!

And we wonder why girls these days are growing up so fast...

I'm on the 4th floor of my building at work. Yesterday an alarm went off and over the loudspeaker, we were told that there was a "fire situation." Good wording! There was some alarm that went off somewhere, and they were trying to get to the bottom of it. Then they told the people on the main floor to evacuate. But soon after they said that a sprinkler went off in the loading bay, and that everything was okay and that the elevators weren't going to be locked down anymore.

So in the case of a fire, what are the people on the other floors supposed to do?! I don't think we even have a fire warden for the company. *sigh* Fire trucks can only go 7 storeys high.

I have started the mass uploading process to my Flickr account, and it's taking a long time!

The wedding is just days away! I got an email from Bridezilla giving us the prices for getting our hair done. It would have been nice if she also listed the hairdresser and an address. And this hairdresser is just starting up her own business so she is taking only cash or cheque. *siiiiiiigh* I am still in the process of building up my funds so that I am able to pay for things I charge to my credit card as soon as I change them. I always pay off my bills in full, but that's because I am counting on my next paycheque!

I feel bad for the gals putting together the slideshow. The couple had been talking about putting one together for a while, but they only gave the photos and the music to my friends yesterday. The wedding is on Saturday. Talk about notice and organization!

I was away camping this weekend, and it was great fun! BC sure is beautiful. We went took logging roads and had water and the mountains all around us.

Of course it rained, but that was okay. Thankfully, we were able to do some 4x4ing to pass the time. The first day we went, everyone who went go stuck. We actually only drove about 20 minutes. Then we spent 2 and a half hours getting everyone out and went back to camp. (It takes a while when trucks are stuck in quicksand...)My camera was a victim in the process when people were digging, and now I can't properly take photos since there is sand in my camera.

But it was always fun to see the trucks getting yanked out. A couple of the trucks required a few attempts. One time, the big chain snapped and whipped over the truck that was doing the pulling. Luckily, the train didn't go through the windshield or the open window in the cab. It flew over the cab and dented the hood of the guy's truck. The second truck was really stuck in there and needed two 4X4s to help him get out. It required rope, chain, and wire.

On the second day, we went up quite high and checked things out. On our way down, we saw 2 people standing on the side of the road. We thought it was quite strange since it was a logging road and all and there were no campsites around that section. We stopped, and the girl has this paper towel over her eye and was a little upset. The guy calmly tells us "our car went over the cliff". We're looking around and see *nothing* but we walk to the ledge and about 10 feet down (maybe more) and there's this white pickup truck.

Of course we're all a little shocked...we talk about taking those two (very lucky individuals) to the hospital, and we check things out. They were with a convoy and shortly after, about 5 or 6 jeeps come back.

The tire marks from the road were about 20 feet behind where the car went over. Thank goodness there were two trees that stopped their fall. There were no skid marks in the road. They looked like they just flew over the cliff and had some trees to stop them. I can't believe how lucky those two were to be able to fall over a cliff and climb out of their truck and back onto the road. It would have been a very far drop. And if they hadn't been able to climb out, who knows how long it would have taken for someone to find them.

However, I felt really not right about every one else quickly climbing down to the truck to throw out the all beer (empties and maybe some full) cans. I think those two should take full responsibility for what happened to them. I couldn't smell alcohol on them, but their friends said the girl (who was the driver) was drunk. And the truck belonged to the passenger. They were already thinking of what story to tell their insurance company.

All in all, we heard those two were all right. Thank goodness.