May 11, 2012 - Cancer

We just got news that my sister (Jenny) does not have thyroid cancer. She has noticed some systems and that the left side of her thyroid was growing. She went to a doctor and got blood work and then the doctor wanted her to go for a scan. When she found that, the doctor said I want to send the results to South Africa to a specialist. The results came back and she was told that it is not cancer, she has nodules on her thyroid filled with fluid. She will need to gets blood work and a scan every 6 months, just to check for changes. If cancer...

May 7, 2012 - Exploring Vancouver

This morning our first priority was buying a GoPro camera. After we got the camera ordeal taken care of we rented a bike and did a tandem bike ride around Stanley Park. Eric did most of the work as he sat in front and I pedaled in the back. This was an awesome ride as we pedaled really fast and passed a lot of people. We had to stop a few times since my shoelaces got stuck twice in the pedals and the bike chain also fell off but besides that it was a lot of fun. At this point we drove up to Grouse mountain. The first thing we did was zip...

May 6, 2012 - Canada

Trip is going great and truck is pulling better than expected. We are averaging 10 mpg through the mountains of Canada. Speaking of the mountains through Canada we decided to take the scenic route on highway 99 to Vancouver. They call that the Sea to Sky highway. It starts high in the mountains and ends at sea level in Vancouver. This was a beautiful drive but sketchy at times. We were driving on a two lane windy road going up and down steep terrain. The steepest was a 15% grade. We passed through lots of places but one of the nicest was...

May 4, 2012 - co-habituating

Living in Edmonton I was often lonely and thought about co-habituating or near-habituating. Usually I imagined living in the same building as some friends or sharing a place with family or close friends. Well for 7 months I have been co-habituating and let me tell you there is something to be said for loneliness…hahahaha. It is not that I have hated my living arrangements; I have learned a lot and have really enjoyed a lot of my time these last 7 months. Having said this, I do miss my own space, the quite calm and the ability to live in my...

May 3, 2012 - Good stuff and bad stuff what is the point of them coming together?

GOOD STUFF!!!!!! Well I found a hearing aid place that is going to try help me get financing to get a couple of hearing aids which I am in desperate need of, too much tape and glue at the moment :( although they helped me out with that for the time being. BAD STUFF... 1) On Monday I got a call from temp agency that wanted to talk to me about a job, I missed the call so I called her back she was out of the office and she has not called me back yet. 2) The woman I am staying with has been in the hospital since Thursday (1 week so far) with 2...

May 1, 2012 - Paris/Venice/Greek Island Cruise - May 2012

The countdown begins for our trip to Europe. We leave May 5 for Paris (via London) for the first leg of our trip. From Paris we will fly to Venice for two nights. We will then board the Norwegian Jade for our cruise of (some of) the Greek Islands. Our journey ends back in Venice on May 19 when we board our plane for home (not looking forward to that part!). We will be renting an apartment in Paris (http://www.vrbo.com/250303) which is located only a few blocks from the Eiffel Tower (a 5 minute walk). I can't wait to eat bread and cheese...

Apr 30, 2012 - Final Day

Last night massive waves continued to thunder into shore, crashing on to the beach but it's really odd because the weather is fine. As I sit here on the patio close to the shoreline it's warm and 'soft' - no wind - but there are these massive waves. Quien sabe, as they say here. Everyone agrees there have been very strange ocean and weather conditions lately. And speaking of ocean conditions, when we first got here the water was warm, there was lots of bait fish out there, therefore lots of pelicans, boobies and other fishing birds and some...

Apr 11, 2012 - 14 years

I am an addict. I have never learned to stop it but I have learned to direct my addition to things that are less harmful. So, instead off drinking myself under the table (haven’t touched it in 14 years) I now find I am addicted to different things though out the years such as: Books, dvds, Murder she wrote, music, walking, stationary, my lightbrite, my slinky (both I gave to my nephew in Africa for Christmas, he was so happy), kitchen items, babies, swimming, gluten free chocolate cupcakes from kinnikinnicks in Edmonton, sooooo good…etc. It...

Apr 10, 2012 - number 6...2 down,37 to go

6) Make myself some slippers, learn to knit first. OK so I did not make the slippers, that may have been too big a goal for this year but I have learned to knit and will continue to work on gaining skill with it. I am going to try getting to a point where my fingers don't ache and my shoulders stop crying. hahaha But hey I am doing it, missed stitched and all. I made promises to myself in the form of a list and am keeping those promises, that's all I can do.

Apr 4, 2012 - Departure from Vancouver

We are scheduled to depart at 13:50 from Vancouver on Air China 992. Our 11 1/2 hour flight crosses the international date line. We land in Beijing at 16:15 local time (1:15 am BC time). China has one time zone and they are 15 hours ahead of BC time. ....................................................................................................................................... April 4 – Getting ready for our flight After a delightful evening of celebrating X birthday and sharing a glass of wine (or two) with the gallivanting gals in...

Apr 1, 2012 - Vancouver Day 5

Woaaa... Yesterday and today were so busy, coz we tried to say EVERYTHING. So on Saturday we went to Guu for lunch. I heard to much about it and really wanted to try it (I think they have locations in Toronto too... not sure if it is the same chain though). There were two locations in downtown, one on Robson and one on Howe. I chose the Howe one. The restaurant was very very small and it took a while before we got seated. Moreover, they won't take reservation (I called). Overall it is a very cozy place even though and I liked how...

Mar 30, 2012 - Vancouver Day 3

Our meeting was held in a hospital in downtown, which was really convenient. So with my colleague, we strolled along the streets of Yaletown, all the way to Stanley Park *yes yes the Mr. Staley Cup* After our 3-4 hours long walk, we went to a great little sushi place for dinner called Kadoya. My coworker got a lesson in how to use chopsticks and tried a light Japanese beer LOL. She did really great with the chopsticks, probably better than me after 1 year I might add. The sushi were outstanding and we both enjoyed them. They have very...