A Few Words in the Wind

PTI challenge #2

2012-02-14T19:56:00.001-08:00

My next offering in the PTI challenge.

And the inside of the above card:

I made a huge mistake with this one. I was having so much fun working on the inside that by the time I was done and had the inside pasted in, I realized, I hadn't stamped anything or done anything with the front of the card. Usually that's my entire focus! So I had to fiddle a bit to get that right and I have to confess, the front is not my best work. But it was fun to do and I learned something in the meantime.

PTI - Shaking all over

2012-02-14T18:12:00.000-08:00

I've stepped outside my comfort zone for this PTI challenge and made an interactive card. I've always wanted to try this, and this challenge was my chance to, well, challenge myself.

I used Heart Prints and Turning a New Leaf for the background, and Heart Prints for the waterfall part. It was fun.

PTI newest challenge

2012-02-10T12:44:00.001-08:00

I put this card together for another PTI challenge and because I wanted to make a card for a very sweet girl. The only thing not PTI on this card is the background paper and the ink for the pink flowers. The first image is the sketch from Nichole Heady's Blog which I used as my inspiration. I changed things up a bit, but that's what inspiration is for, right? A starting point. Thanks for stopping.

One more PTI challenge card

2012-02-06T18:39:00.000-08:00

This is my last card I made for this challenge. And now, back to my regular job. This was a lot of fun and I hope to participate in a few more challenges. I used all PTI products for this card except for the plain ordinary pencil crayons I used to colour the image.

PTI freebie challenge

2012-02-06T14:50:00.000-08:00

Another card for the challenge. All PTI products this time. Such fun.

PTI Challenge #2

2012-02-06T13:32:00.001-08:00

All PTI - all the time.

PTI 5th Anniversary challenge - Image Freebie

2012-02-06T12:41:00.001-08:00

This is a card I made for the PTI 5th anniversary challenge using the images Nichole Heady put up on her blog. This is also my very first challenge! The paper and die cuts are PTI - the patterned paper is from Echo Park - Country drive, the doily is just a plain doily you can buy to put under cakes, the ribbon I picked up at Michaels. This was a fun challenge and I really want to say thanks to the PTI design team for all the work they put into making our crafting so much fun.

trying to stay current

2011-09-29T12:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's been ages since I last posted here. A friend of mine stopped by here (hey Sandra) and mentioned that I haven't put anything up here. Truthfully, I keep forgetting about this place I've parked some of my words in the wind. Right now the wind is blowing leaves off the trees with a vengeance which really bugs me because I broke my camera and I can't take fall pictures. The leaves are a glorious splash of color right now. Like I said in my Facebook page, All Nature Sings. Right now I've got a book out called The Cowboy's Lady. It's part of a continuity I did with a few other authors. So that's been fun. My first book in the Home to Hartley Creek series, Rancher's Return, came out beginning of this month and hopefully should still be available . The second book called Daddy Lessons is out in March. I was in the Toronto offices of Harlequin and got to see the mockup of the cover. As usual, Gorgeous. The people at Harlequin Love Inspired do a great, great job of the covers. The third book of the series, Healing the Doctor's Heart, comes out in June and I'm currently working on the fourth book in the series. I hope you can persevere and find them all. For now, I have to get back to work. Take care all.

Fall

2010-10-02T14:26:00.001-07:00

Fall is here and with it comes the beautiful colors. It’s like nature is singing. I love the changing of the seasons and the moods each one brings. When fall comes, I want to start baking again, making soup and taking care of my family. What kind of things do you find yourself doing in the fall that you don’t otherwise do?

finally

2009-03-02T10:19:00.000-08:00

Keeping up to all the things I should be doing to promote myself is hard work! And it requires consistency, something I seem to be allergic to. I figure sitting down to the computer every day to write is doing pretty good already. Anyhow, thought I would try to keep up this blog a bit more regularly just to keep my name out in this particular corner of cyberspace.

And now, back to my regularly scheduled writing.

A moving experienceq

2007-09-19T16:26:00.001-07:00

I've moved my blog to a new space on the web - my home page. I spend more time on my web page than I do on this blog, so if you want to read my meandering musings, check out my website, find out what's new with my writing - Plus you can enter to win a cool canuck canoe complete with cleansers.

Click here to go to website

All the Tea in China

2007-06-29T16:13:00.000-07:00

Ni hao. I am writing this post from a hotel in Beijing with a newly acquired and deep admiration for Jack Bauer. I don't know how he does it. I was up for 23 hours, travelling, and for most of that time the biggest decision I had to make was chicken or pork when the steward on the plane asked me my meal preference. And in spite of that very low key mind power, by the time I hit 22 hours, I was fading and fading fast. However our hosts recommended that we try, as quickly as posible, to jump into local time so I dogged my way through conversation, got a few third and fourth spurts of energy and then drifted down again. I fell into bed thinking I would sleep for hours - 6 hours later - wide awake. So today will be another long day, but today we go to the Great Wall of China and a few other sights. I'm counting on the stimulation of being in this new and exciting place to keep me going, but most of all I'm figuring the shopping. Jack has his 'save civilization scenarios to keep him on his game, I'm going to count on bargaining to keep me up and going. For further bulletins, check out my own blog A Few Words in the Wind

All The Tea in China

2007-06-01T07:33:00.000-07:00

Jane Orcutt, a fellow author, passed away this winter. Jane's dry wit and keen grasp of ideas made for interesting discussions on the writer's loop we were both a part of. This same writer's loop would meet at a retreat before the Christian Book Sellers Convention, now known as ICRS, International Christian Retail Show. There were a number of years that Jane, myself and a number of others were unable to attend the retreat, so Jane had the idea of creating our own cyber-retreat. Things ended up getting a little crazy at the cyber-retreat, often pirate themed. Jane spear-headed the craziness and many of us went along for the ride. Now, Jane Orcutt has a book out called All the Tea in China. Marlo Shalesky, author, has this to say about the book, "With its rich detail and saucy characters, All the Tea in China is fun romp around Cape Horn and into China. I loved the spunk of Isabella, the mystery of Phineas, and the allure of a country so distant from our own. Hats off to Jane Orcutt for such an enjoyable read!"

I have the book on order myself and will blog further about it when I've read it. But knowing Jane and knowing how she never failed to make me laugh and/or think, I'm looking forward to the book. You can purchase it by following this link:

http://www.amazon.com/All-Tea-China-Rollicking-Regency/dp/0800731794/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-8254854-4592837?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180708494&sr=8-1

I'n sooo sick

2007-05-23T10:45:00.000-07:00

Flu season is upon us and against our will, my husband and I are participating. He started it. He usually does. And he shared it with me. Coughiung, sputtering, sneezing, nose blowing - the usual detritus of illness beside my bed. Cough drops, water bottle, kleenex old and new. Yeah. Until one morning I woke up, after five days of hacking and sniffing and thought, "This is much, much worse." I couldn't think, couldn't put on my glasses, my head ached and when I blew my nose . . . .we shall draw a curtain of charity on this scene. Suffice it to say, I was in bad shape. I got dressed in a haze, drove to the hospital in a haze, hoping that I wouldn't have to explain and justify why I needed medicine. My previous doctor didn't always listen to my self-diagnosing and would often balk at prescribing me something unless I could explain the symptoms in gory detail. No deviation. So I was suspecting I might have the same difficulty this time around, with my new doctor. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I sat on the bed in the outpatients department as my doctor listened to my chest, explaining that I had to lift my shirt so he could. He asked me a couple of questions, he scribbled something on the magic pad and I had my entree into the wonderful world of antibiotics. When I was relating my "I was a patient" story to my husband and how easy it all went, he looked at me and frowned.
"Did you wear that shirt to the hospital?" he asked.
I knew it was clean. I grew up with a mother who always told us to put on clean underwear anytime we left the house. Just in case.
"Yes. It's not dirty is it?"
He laughed. "No it's perfectly clean, but no wonder you got the prescription so fast. That doctor took one look at you and said, this is one siiiick woman. Your put your shirt on inside out."

nature naturally

2007-04-30T20:28:00.000-07:00

My friend was teasing me about being a lazy blogger. So here's me. Blogging again. My husband and I went on a little trip a few days ago and went through the Rocky Mountains on our way to British Columbia. I took this picture of one of my favorite mountains. It's informally called, the politically incorrect, Indian Head. Can you see it? Let me know if you can.

Valley of Betrayal

2007-03-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

Valley of Betrayal
Today is my day to host Tricia Goyer's blog tour on her newest book, Valley of Betrayal.

The Story Behind the Novel: by Tricia Goyer herself

A few years ago when I was researching for my fourth World War II novel, Arms of Deliverance, I came across a unique autobiography. One B-17 crewmember I read about claimed to make it out of German-occupied Belgium after a plane crash due, in part, to his skills he picked up as a veteran of The Spanish Civil War. Reading that bit of information, I had to scratch my head. First of all, I had never heard of the war. And second, what was an American doing fighting in Spain in the late 1930s? Before I knew it, I uncovered a fascinating time in history—one that I soon discovered many people know little about. This is what I learned:
Nazi tanks rolled across the hillsides and German bombers roared overhead, dropping bombs on helpless citizens. Italian troops fought alongside the Germans, and their opponents attempted to stand strong—Americans, British, Irishmen, and others—in unison with other volunteers from many countries. And their battleground? The beautiful Spanish countryside.
From July 17, 1936-April 1, 1939, well before America was involved in World War II, another battle was fought on the hillsides of Spain. On one side were the Spanish Republicans, joined by the Soviet Union and The International Brigade—men and women from all over the world who have volunteered to fight Fascism. Opposing them, Franco and his Fascist military leaders, supported with troops, machinery, and weapons from Hitler and Mussolini. The Spanish Civil War, considered the “training ground” for the war to come, boasted of thousands of American volunteers who joined to fight on the Republican side, half of which never returned home.
Unlike World War II, there is no clear line between white and black, good and evil. Both sides committed atrocities. Both sides had deep convictions they felt worth fighting and dying for.
Loyalists—also know as the Republicans were aided by the Soviet Union, the Communist movement, and the International Brigades. If not for the weapons and volunteers from these sources their fight would have ended in weeks rather than years. While many men fought side by side, their political views included that of liberal democracy, communism and socialism. The Catholic Basque Country also sided with the Republic, mainly because it sought independence from the central government and was promised this by Republican leaders in Madrid.
Nationalists—or Francoists were aided mainly by Germany and Italy. The Nationalist opposed an independent Basque state. Their main supporters were those who believed in a monarchist state and fascist interests. The Nationalist wished for Spain to continue on as it had for years, with rich landowners, the military, and the church running the country. Most of the Roman Catholic clergy supported the Nationalists, except those in the Basque region.
During the Spanish Civil war, terror tactics against civilians were common. And while history books discuss the estimated one million people who lost their lives during the conflict, we must not forget that each of those who fought, who died, had their own tales. From visitors to Spain who found themselves caught in the conflict, to the communist supporters, Basque priests, and Nazi airmen . . . each saw this war in a different light. These are the stories behind A Valley of Betrayal.
Tricia Goyer, October 2006

Back in the Saddle

2007-03-28T07:27:00.000-07:00

Disciplined living is something I struggle with. Take this blog for instance. I had so many good intentions to post every day - and then life gets in the way and I fail. I realize I haven't posted her for over a month! I can rattle off a list of excuses and it doesn't matter. You don't need to know. But I feel at times as if I'm being pulled in ten directions and I need to priortize. So, from time to time, this blog will be one of the first things to fall away. But today, though I'm not inspired - (this posting is the equivalent of a kid writing an essay about how hard it is to write an essay) - I thought I would at least make an attempt to get started again. So here I am, back in the saddle, tossing out words in the wind.

OH Deer

2007-02-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

Every now and then, after spending too much time in front of my computer I look up, blink a couple of times and realize there's a world out there. The other day I went with my husband out to the bush (he's a logging contractor) just to see what is happening in his life. He's been telling me about all these deer in the logging blocks and i wanted to see them for myself. Thought I would share some pictures with any of you who stop by here as well.

The aftermath

2007-02-03T07:00:00.000-08:00

I went to town yesterday, anxious to test my new-found self-discipline. I had a bunch of cash in my purse from odds and ends cheques that had come my way over the past few months and that I had cashed. I had to go to a bunch of places in town and once again, managed to come home with only what was on my list. Could this be? Had I conquered the spending beast within?

Then last night, as I was tossing and turning at about 2:00 in the morning (I am sure this is the devils favorite time - when the night seems empty and everyone else is asleep) I got up and sat down at my computer. Checked some sites I had bookmarked - and - oh no - found a site I had visited from time to time, tempted to purchase some of the instructional writing DVD's they had listed. I had resisted purchasing these for almost a year - until last night. Despondent. Alone. Wondering about my writing career.

I needed help, right? Purchasing the DVD's was cheaper than a conference, right? I could mark this as a tax deduction, right? I had been pretty self disciplined and I deserved to do some spending, right?

The right answer most of the above should have been - wrong. But it was 2:00. I was alone. So I bought them. Paid for them with the phantom money afforded to me by my credit card.

Regrets? A few. But this means that now I can look forward to getting a parcel in the mail. Taking it home. Ripping the box open. Holding my purchases in my hands. Imagining my writing career taking new and dramatic turns as a result of what I was about to learn. That's one thing that buying over the internet has over buying at a store. The prolonged anticipation of the purchase. Of course, this now means I have blown my spending budget for the month - and it's only the 3rd! Guess I'm going to have another no-buy month. Thankfully February has less days.

Day 28

2007-01-29T06:47:00.000-08:00

I walked right past the book aisle, the DVD aisle and the clothes. My feet didn't falter when I came to the kitchen applicances or the furniture. I stayed away from the bakery. For the first time in a long time I walked out of Costco with only the items on my list. Nothing more. Of course it helped to have my husband along on this trip to the city - though he said he wasn't watching me, I knew he was watching me - waiting for me to slip up. Pride is a great motivator. Plus, knowing that I'm on the countdown. Why mess up so close to the end! This is Day 28 of No-Buy month and this is Carolyne, hoping she doesn't splurge February 1st!

HELP

2007-01-26T06:50:00.000-08:00

Today I go to the city with my husband. He's in a spending mood. And after 26 days of watching my money ( a very boring prospect let me tell you) I'm getting antsy. He wants to go look for a horse trailer. Fine with me. No temptation there. And Welsh's Saddlery. Ditto on the spending there. And Costco. Yikes. My nemesis. You see, I live out in the country and Costco is a once every few weeks, maybe even once every six weeks, event. I've seen good deals there - thought I should buy said item, but maybe not now and the next time I'm there - gasp - it's gone! And they don't re-order unless it's their usual stuff. So. Today, after not walking the crowded aisles of one of my favorite places for six weeks, I have to go in with my list of necessities and go out with ONLY what is on my list. This will be the true test of No-Buy month! I will see if self-control holds out over the desire to have - and at a good price. This is Day 26 of No-Buy Month and this is Carolyne, clutching her wallet.

No Buy Day 18

2007-01-18T14:40:00.000-08:00

Over the years we've had various discussions with our children over money. The main gist of what we've said to them can be summed up in the following - It's not what you make, it's what you spend. I would edit that and say What you make is probably less important than what you spend. Making money is the hard part of the equation and one you often have the least control over. If you are on a salary you are tied to a certain wage with only cost of living increases, the occasional bonus to provide you with extras. What you can control is the other side of the equation. What you spend. This is where you have some control and some say and this is where the self-control becomes the primary factor in how much you will have at the endof the month. I know that this month has been interesting for me. I have a credit on my credit card! How often does that happen! My bank account hasn't dipped as low as quickly and for the most part, I haven't missed much of what I haven't bought. Of course, the real test will be next month when the spending fast is over. Will I binge? I hope not. Anyhow, this is Day 18 of No-Buy month and this is Carolyne, counting her cash.

Dollars and Sense

2007-01-14T18:26:00.000-08:00

A financial advisor once told us that people have two major attitudes toward money - greed and fear. I know I often struggle with either atttude. I worry about the future - and think I need more than what I have in order to maintain my current lifestyle (or even better it!). I fear losing what we have and therefore having to start all over again. Then a good friend told me something that I've tried to apply to life. Money is a tool, simply that. It isn't something to worship or run after, it is something to use. As Christians, it is also only one of the tools we use to serve our Lord. So I try to apply this attitude to my life, even though I know easily slip into one of the two negatives. This is an ongoing struggle. This month of not spending helps shift my attitude toward money. Helps me to see other things beyond what I can buy and what the money in my savings account can represent. Today was easy. Today was Sunday. We went to church, visited friends, had a nap and read our books. Spending wasn't even a blip on the radar. This is Day 14 of No Buy Month and this is Carolyne not daring to get smug (we're going to the city at the end of this week!)

Snow day

2007-01-11T08:43:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it's easy to save money, sometimes it's hard. It's easy when I can't go anywhere. My husband plowed the two feet of snow we had dumped on us yesterday during a white-out blizzard and he said he wasn't going plow out my Subaru which was fine. I hadn't planned on going anywhere - besides with temps like these, why would I want to? If I really wanted, I know I could power through that snow. It is a Subaru after all. But I don't mind the excuse to stay put.This is Day 10 of No-Buy month and this is Carolyne, saving her money by staying at home.

No Buy Day 8

2007-01-08T11:22:00.000-08:00

I am a machine!! I went to our local Co-op and bought only what was on my list. Bananas, coffee for my husband, granola, cottage cheese, butter and raisin buns. NOTHING more. (pat self on back) No towels that were on sale, no scrapbooking supplies, no knick-knacks and no snacks. And then I came home and while I ate lunch, surfed the net and didn't buy this necklace for $13,000.00 or the brooch below for a mere $16,000.00. And here I thought I had no self-restraint. So I'm feeling better after my slip on Saturday. This is day 8 of No-Buy month and this is Carolyne, back in the saddle again.

Does it count? Day 7

2007-01-07T16:43:00.000-08:00

My husband called me from town, a twenty -five minute drive away. It was Saturday and I tend to slip into Saturday mind-set. Things go a little slower, I take my time doing my chores and if I work, I usually don't work much or very hard, seeing every page of writing I do on Saturday as an extra. Anyway I didn't feel like cooking, which isn't just a Saturday thing I must confess. Did I want him to buy some pizza? Sure I said. I mean if he spent the money it didn't count did it? And though there is a spirit to no-buy month, and though I don't want to fall into my usual Calvinistic rules and subsequent guilt, I realized I had stumbled and fallen. So this week, it's try again. This is Day 7 of No-Buy month and this is Caroyne determined to try again.

aye, aye Tunes

2007-01-06T06:25:00.000-08:00

As with every good fall, this one started with pride. My huband and I were listening to the radio, I was fooling around on my laptop, my husband was bugging me about why I even bother going on the internet when it is such a waste of time - a song came on the radio - he said he really liked it but didn't know what it was. I gave him my superior smile, said nothing, surfed That Useless Internet, did a Google search of one of the phrases in the song, found not only the title of the song but the lyrics as well. Then I figured I would really amaze him so without telling him what I was doing, I zipped over to iTunes, found the song, downloaded it to play for him later and then, while I was there, I thought I may as well get that Enya c.d. my daughter was talking about, oh ya and there's a really cool song by Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt I wanted to get - hit Buy Now without even a flicker of awareness. Play the song for my husband that lead me down this purchasing path, watch his eyebrows go up in amazement. Hah. So cool am I!

Then, this morning, as I was humming that elusive song, my husband asked me "Isn't this No-Buy month". "Yes," I said. "Then what about that song you bought?" Blank look and then realization came in a sickening rush. And the worst of it was, I would have gone on blissfully unaware I had even done it. That's how easy it is to spend money!!! That's how easy it is to fall. This is Day Six of No-Buy month and this Carolyne Aarsen trying to regain her no-buy balance.

No Buy Day 5

2007-01-04T11:07:00.000-08:00

Yesterday of no buy month was easy. I didn't go anywhere and I was so busy rescuing our main power pole from falling over that once I got back to work, I didn't feel like surfing the 'net and I had a quota of work to fill so I was safe. What I have found interesting, though, is the whole concept of waiting to buy something. Often, if I ignore the impulse, the desperate 'need' to have whatever it was I HAD to have, does go away. Part of my problem with spending is my need to have the whole bundle. I'm the kind of person that isn't satisfied with just Barbie. I have to have all her friends and all their 'stuff'. F'rinstance - I like scrapbooking. I got a Creative Memories catalogue. I read said catalogue and enjoyed looking at the pretty pictures and soon I was thinking "I have to have that". Not only 'that' per se, but all the accessories. All of them. The fancy cutters, the punches, the templates, the paper, the stickers, the idea books, the pens, the things to hold all the things and on it goes. Companies like those are made for people like me. Not even going to talk about the Fisher Price Loving Family dollhouse . . . with accessories. Anyhow, this is Day 5 of No-Buy month and this is Carolyne saving her money.

No Buy Day 4

2007-01-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

Welcome to No Buy month Day 4. Checking in to give you a progress report. On Day 2 I went to town and didn't buy a People magazine, chocolate bar, doughnut at the bakery or some paper that was on sale. Brought all my pop cans and bottles away and came back with $45.00 in cash which I didn't spend. For a change. So far so good. On Day 3 I surfed the net and didn't buy some DVD's. So far so good. The real test will come in a week when my husband and I have to go to the city. Usually the thought sends a little thrill up my spine because that means malls and stores and all kinds of places to spend money. Having my husband along definitely subdues the little chill. I don't know how he does it but he can drive right by IKEA, West Edmonton Mall, Staples, Linen's 'n Things and his foot won't even leave the accelerator. Nerves of steel that man.

Mo Money

2007-01-02T09:17:00.000-08:00

This month I'm embarking on a money experiment. I've declared January No-Buy-Month. This month I'm not buying books, c.d.'s, books, clothes, chocolate, books . . . Did I mention I'm not buying books? Are you sensing this might be the hardest part of no buy month as I'm surfing the web with my new (ahem) high speed internet, hopping from book site to book site hoping for the thrill of going to the post office and finding a little white card in my mail box telling me that Amazon has shipped me yet another package of books . . .Thank goodness I'm not going it alone, like I did last year. I made a trip to Grand Rapids Michigan and a friend and I went shopping and we hit all kinds of lovely sales and . . I . . did . . not. . . buy . . . but it was haaaard. Especially when we came to a Franklin Covey store and they had a sale on their handbags. 50% off the first one, 75% off the second one. My friend was trying to convince me to buy the second one and we would split the total cost . . . such a deal!!! But I clutched my wallet, shook my head and walked away from temptation. This month, I have two women in my corner. And I was thinking of them when I went to one of my favorite websites, Creative Memories and discovered, OH NO, they are discontinuing some of my favorite products. Must . . . buy . . . can't . . . miss . . . out. This is a necessity, isn't it? I mean what if they don't have this stuff next month? It's just a few stickers . . . I didn't buy them. I'm sticking to my guns and if you're interested in the journey, come back from time to time and I'll keep you posted on my progress. This is Day Two of No-Buy month and this is Carolyne saving her money.

Yield not to Temptation

2006-12-12T09:15:00.000-08:00

Must pay bills. Must not succumb to shiny inserts. Must not look . . .
I can't stand it. Every time I get a statement from Sears or The Hudson's Bay Company, or my bank for goodness sakes, they stick that 'sucker' stuff in it. You know what i mean. Those shiny envelope size pieces of paper advertising ladder karts, air beds, personalized Disney books. I always, always flip through them and like a magpie I always, always find something shiny that catches my eye. I'm exactly the kind of person companies are targeting. I'm the kind of person that always looks at the gadgets by the checkout counter. But I'm trying to exercise self-discipline. I only gave the inserts a quick glance this time and with each piece of paper fluttering out of my hands I said no to the fake rings ... no to the shower radio . . . no. . . . my goodness, an egg cooker and toaster in one? Looks interesting. . . .

Nature calls

2006-11-30T06:53:00.000-08:00

I read a lovely poem the other day to my husband. It was about a duck sitting peacefully in the middle of a calm lake while the sun set. So peaceful. So serene. My husband raised one eyebrow. "The duck's probably sitting there because if it gets too close to the reeds a coyote or fox will finish it off". My husband. Always the pragmatist. And the trouble is he's turned me into one as well. I used to have a romantic notion about nature and life. As a city girl transplanted to the country I used to see a deer and get excited, now I watch it with a wary eye to make sure the dumb thing doesn't suddenly decide to spin around, jump the fence and hit my vehicle. Which has happened. Too many times. I used to love the sound of coyotes serenading us at night. Until they started eating my chickens and luring my dog into the bush and attacking it. And then there's squirrels. So cute. So fun to watch. Until they chewed a hole in the screen of my kitchen and promptly chewed a chunk out of ten loaves of home made bread cooling on the counter, made merry in the house pooping as they went knocking down ornaments and dragging sundry items to sundry places. Me and the squirrels are now at war. Me and nature have a different understanding now. And while I can still enjoy a sunset, appreciate the changing seasons, revel in a long walk outdoors, I know that deep in the bushes are the coyotes and the deer and the squirrels. And they are watching me.

Snow fun

2006-11-22T07:30:00.000-08:00

We have snow. Lots of snow. Snow on the ground, snow on the tree branches, snow on my new car/van/suv. Don't quite know what to call it yet but now that all the snow is here I'm glad I got my Subaru Forester. I drove our '92 mini van for mini, mini years determined to eke out every kilometre I could. It got to be a point of honour. When I drove somewhere in the dear vehicle people would frown and say, "you still driving that thing?" I was determined, just out of orneriness to drive it till it quit. But then the snow came and the ice and the snow and the rain and the ice. Oh yes, and snow. I got stuck on my yard on a level spot. So I decided that pride goeth before me hitting the ditch and so I ditched my faithful mini van and bought the Subaru. So far, I love it, though I have to confess I felt a little tug of dislolyalty when I emptied out the glove box from the mini van and took my iPod charger, my phone charger, my sunglasses and my spare toque and mitts and put them in the Subaru. Now the van is parked in the 'vehicles waiting to be sold' part of our yard, joining my son's truck which is also there. I have to drive past the van every time I haul firewood to the house and I'm convinced it's looking very sad. It needs a new home. A place where someone will appreciate it's years of faithful service. So if you're interested in a '92 Chev mini van with 280,000 kilometres on it, no rust, no dents, good inside, few cracks on the windshield and lots of stories to tell if you only take the time to listen . . . . let me know.

choices

2006-11-21T07:07:00.000-08:00

We are not a happy people. We grump around our lives complaining when someone cuts us off in traffic, when the person in front of us takes too long to pay for their groceries, when we can't buy the thing that we need RIGHT now (Sony Playstation anyone?). What is wrong with us? We have the highest standard of living, the most disposable income and yet people seem overall, disastisfied. I think it comes down to choices. We have too many. Every day we have to make too many decisions. Take coffee for instance. Used to be you just had a cup of coffee and you paid your money. Basic. Cream and sugar optional. NOW?Tall, skinny, grande, macchiato, French Vanilla, espresso, Frap-puccino, latte, capuccino and on and on. It dazzles the mind all the choices. Walk into any Staples and you don't just have pens and pencils and papers anymore. There are whole aisles devoted to the simple ball point pen - or rather ball point or gel or fountain pen and many variations of each of those. Maybe you should get a magazine to help you relax. Right. Check out any magazine aisle in any grocery store or drugstore and once again an avalanche of choices awaits you. Groceries, clothing, shoes, computers, phones - too many choices. We get confused and disoriented and then, in spite of the abundance in front of us, we get grumpy because we get afraid that somehow, somewhere a better pen, a tastier cup of coffee, a nicer vehicle awaits us. We might have made the wrong choice!

biting the apple

2006-10-14T20:04:00.000-07:00

So here I sit on my couch in my iving room typing on my new apple laptop. I feel like a bit of traitor - for as long as I've had a computer, it's been a PC. In fact I bought brand new one with a whopping 21 inch screen. Lovely jubbly. Until the monitor quit and I had to unplug it, wait half a minute, then plug it in again. While I was crouched on the floor under my computer desk, counting slowly to thirty, with a plug in my hand, I thought "There has to be a better way". Then the burner of the computer quit. I called up tech support - yes they would send a new one right away. I discovered that 'right away' is a matter of perspective. To date, 'right away' hasn't happened yet. When I had to send eight error reports in the space of twenty minutes, I threw in the towel, hit my computer screen, then packed up the whole business, brought it back and bought an iMac. It's beautiful, runs without a hitch and when I bought a matching, cute, light laptop to go with, all the error reports and freeze ups and moments under my desk became a thing of the past. I guess we'll see how long this 'hitchless' period lasts. This might just be a honeymoo period, but for now, I'm in love.

Oh OOOOpera

2006-09-18T07:16:00.000-07:00

I like movies. I like the special effects, I like the acting, I like seeing the faces and expressions of the actors right up front. I like being able to hear what the actors are saying and, if that doesn't work, on my DVD player there's always subtitles.
And then my son took me to Phantom of the Opera. We had good seats - first balcony quarter way up - with no one sitting in front of us. I had taken binoculars. I knew, from watching movies of people watching opera, that the tiny binoculars my husband uses for spotting deer, moose and coyotes were just perfect for the Opera, dahling.
I was prepared for a good time. I was dressed up in my Christy Award Banquet dress and my son wore a snazzy suit. But as the curtain rose I had to confess I was a little disappointed that I couldn't see the actors faces like I could on television. I'd heard that the effects were amazing and was wondering how a live play could compete with Lord of the Rings. I knew most of the lines were sung, not spoken and I wondered if I was going to enjoy it a lot.
But at the point in the play when the theme music swelled from the orchestra and the lit chandelier rose from the stage and was drawn up and over the audience I was hooked. How to describe something so amazing and so compelling. All my concerns disappeared. The binoculars were fun to use but not entirely necessary. And as the play progressed and I was drawn into this opera I understood why The Phantom of the Opera is the longest playing production on Broadway. I didn't need subtitles, the special effects were truly heart-stopping and amazing. I'm a writer and I'm still trying to find the right words to wrap around this event, this spectacular event.
All I know is that if I saw it on television it would lose too much in translation and I'd find myself fast-forwarding.
But live? No comparison. I'd see it again.

Special Delivery

2006-09-06T15:03:00.000-07:00

"I'm sorry we don't ship to P.O. Boxes. Can you give me your physical address," says the person taking my phone order.
I sigh. "Well, I could give you my physical address, but I know you won't ship to it. I'll give you . . . ."
"Fed Ex will ship anywhere." Heavy emphasis on anywhere. This person has obviously watched CastAway too many tmes.
"They won't ship here," I say full of the knowledge gleaned from approximately 287 such encounters in the past fifteen years.
Sigh from order-taking-person. "Just give me the address and I'll decide that."
"Fine." I rattle off the legal land description - the physcial address of a quarter section of land that is approximately twenty miles from the nearest town of 4,000 and approximately thirteen miles from the nearest hamlet of about 100. Where our post office is. And I hear the pause that I always hear whenever I do this. I wait, letting this sink in. It's petty of me. I know. I just don't like being treated with condescension. I've lived with teenagers. Now that the kids are all grown up condescension is no longer welcome in my home. In all my years of ordering online and over the phone, no delivery company in the entire English speaking world has EVER brought ANYTHING to my door yet. Not UPS, not Canada Post, not Purolator, not FedEx, not DHL. None of these friendly delivery people has ever driven the long miles down our gravel roads to pull up to my house with a smile and a package. Nor will they. I realize that most of these ordering places are located in the city. I understand that many of these ordering people think that the country they drive through to get from one city to another is simply there for their inconvenience. I would like these ordering type people to check out Google Earth and look at the endless amounts of roadway that cut through all the country between cities and realize that people live on those roads. And that delivery companies will most probably NOT go that extra mile to bring a package to my door. I don't have time to educate this person, however, and I'm not patient enough to try to explain that not everyone in the world lives on a paved street with street lights outside their house and that the only way I can get high speed internet is to plunk a satellite dish on the top of my house because cable companies won't drag themselves this far out either. Do you sense some frustration? You are very astute. Trouble is now that I HAVE high speed internet, I can order stuff online even faster. And every time I do I have to explain once again why I'm getting these people to deliver their stuff to the store in our small town. Where, by the way, the post office is located.

Of Tractors and Such

2006-09-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

The job was supposed to be simple. Or so my husband assured me before he hied himself off to a very remote place where I won't be able to reach him for a few more days. All I had to do was turn the key and our new tractor would fire up and I could pick up a very large round bale with the bale forks dump it into the feeder and all would be well in my world and the cow's world who are a little short of pasture because we haven't had rain for a number of days and we're giving them hay to supplement their feed. Trouble is when it comes to me and machinery, NOTHING is ever simple. Especially when said husband is gone. Of course the tractor wouldn't start. Of course I couldn't get hold of said husband. Of course I needed to feed the cows TODAY because I put it off for a few days because the forecast called for rain. Of course it didn't rain. A few frantic phone calls and a neighbour came to my rescue, diagnosed the problem, jerry rigged it for now and promised to show up next week with a new fuel line which was the cause of my frustration. Right. I should have known that. (hand smacking forehead). Stupid of me. When in doubt, check the fuel line. So. Of course this is all my husband's fault. (what can I say, I'm petty) Of course I need to formulate suitable revenge. (try really petty) And this is it. A semi-permanent rant. (really, really petty) Of course, what bothers me the most is when my husband comes home and I tell him, he'll laugh. His standard response to any of my frustrations.

The care and feeding of nieces

2006-08-28T11:56:00.000-07:00

I've dived back into the land of 'are we there yet' and 'I'm thirsty', reading long bed-time stories and making short phone calls. I'm taking care of my almost-four-year old niece for a couple of days. It's interesting getting back into the routine. I have to remind myself I didn't entertain my children every waking hour and that it's okay if the kids don't finish all the food on their plate but not okay if they walk around with a cup of hot chocolate. At this stage of my life I'm still surprised I did all the sewing/canning/cleaning/preserving I did with three kids at home under the age of four. My life has found a different rhythm since then and it's hard to dance with an almost four year old to the beat of a different drummer. Of course the other benefit of babysitting is that I don't have to discipline or shape and mold behavior. Consequently, darling little niece is now parked in front of the television watching The Lion King, just so her aunty can post to her blog about the adventures of babysitting. There's a lesson here. I just don't know if I have time to puzzle it out. The movie is going to end pretty soon and I'm running out of time.

Pluto - oh no!

2006-08-25T07:41:00.000-07:00

I am shocked. Disappointed. Deceived. All these years of thinking Pluto was a planet - over. Gone. Like dust in the wind. Pluto has been demoted. No longer a proud ordinarly planet it is now only a dimming dwarf planet. What puzzles me is this was done at a meeting complete with resolutions and drafts and lobbying. In fact, there was a radical faction that had not only suggested Pluto remain a planet, but that three other celestial bodies, lurking at the outer rim, be also granted entree into our solar system.Now of course we can't let just any old celestial body into our very unique solar system so it was fairly unanimous. Demote Pluto. My goodness, it's high school all over again!

Bummed on Benylin

2006-08-24T04:40:00.000-07:00

Reading instructions on bottles of cough syrup is always a good thing. Reading dosages on bottles of cough syrup is even better. Do this and you won't end up like me, wide awake at 4:00 in the morning unable to function or think straight. Yesterday my ribs were sore from coughing. I would periodically lurch out of my chair, hacking and choking pawing through my paper-strewn desk for cough candies, my water bottle, Buckleys - anything to stop me from coughing. I had, or have, a cold. I don't know where I am in this 'cold' time-line because I overdosed on Benylin last night. I was tired. My eyes were bleary from staring at a computer screen trying to edit out unneccesary words like 'it' and 'was' and 'were' and 'that' before I sent my manuscript off to my editor. I was tired of reading and tired of coughing so before I went to bed I pulled out the Benylin, scanned the instructions which is hard to do when the print is fine and the head is shaking from coughing - was surprised to read that an adult would need two tablespoons of the stuff - and down the hatch it went. This morning, puzzled at my wakefulness and headache and general feeling that I will never, ever cough again, or even be able to clear my throat, I re-read the instructions.
Not tablespoons. Teaspoons. It's almost 6:00 and I don't think I'm out of the woods for another couple of hours. My husband wanted me to learn how to operate the tractor today but the bottle said do not operate heavy machinery and I would think a tractor would qualify as heavy and seeing as how I just about tripled the recommended dosage, I think the tractor might stay parked for a couple of days. Let my experience be a cautionary tale. Don't Do Drugs. And use a teaspoon for the Benylin.

filling up space

2006-08-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

August and holidays - that's what's been keeping me busy the past month. And, (trumpet blast) deadlines. I've got one galloping toward me as I write this so that's the reason I haven't been posting much here. Actually, this is my first post in August! How sad.

We had our annual Aarsen campout the past month. The aunties set up base camp for five or six days and the kids and husbands come and go. I had three of my kids (and husband) come out to eat pancakes cooked over an open fire, smokies cooked over an open fire, hamburgers cooked over an open fire. And I wonder why my clothes all smell like woodsmoke when we get home! I took my writing along to do some editing - I had to get work done but I didn't want to miss out on the fun especially because the kids were going to be there. Lots of fun and lots of laughs and the discovery of a new obsession game - Blokus.

I discovered a great website that I've been using to help me organize my life. http://www.FlyLady.net . I highly recommend checking this out if you feel as if your house is slowly being taken over by dust, mess and stuff. She recommends 'baby steps' in organization and her tips and hints are practical and, even more important for this slightly chaotic person, doable.

And now, back to work.

These things called words

2006-07-24T13:40:00.000-07:00

I’ve been pondering words. Not important words like transubstantion. No. Simple words. Like cushion. At first glance, or first sound, the word creates a picture in your mind. Soft, square, or round, thingy stuffed with foam or fibres. A decorative item carefully selected as accent pieces to enhance the décor or tie in the Ikea print and the couch, then nicely fluffed and artfully arranged and on couches or beds until some guy comes along and decides he needs every square inch of space that the bed or couch can provide and immediately tosses onto the floor every pretty cushion. Guys, as a rule, don’t treat cushions with respect. And how can they, really. Just say cushion a couple of times and see how you feel about the things afterward. Go ahead. With me now, on three, one, two, three . . . Cushion. Cushion. Cushion. Cushion. Keep saying it and the word loses it meaning. It becomes similar to the noise you would make when you’re trying to chase the neighbor's cat that is using your flower bed as a litter box. Cushion sounds silly and it doesn’t even sound like a word after awhile. I’ve been pondering the word cushion because I’ve been checking out the Ikea web site for said cushions. After navigating through seventeen cushion menu choices the word starts to sound silly. Cushion. Cushion. Cushion. I mean, who decided that those particular letters in that particular order should represent stuffed pieces of material? Of course there is latin antecedents with some Greek and Hebrew and French thrown in, but how did THEY decide? And why the letter U instead of the letter A. And that I and O business? Why didn’t we get to vote on that? Very undiplomatic. Maybe I’ll launch a protest. Maybe I won’t use the word cushion anymore! Maybe I’ll just call it a pillow.

Pillow. Pillow. Pillow.

Some Like it Hot

2006-07-21T05:32:00.000-07:00

I don't do hot well up here in Northern Alberta. For one thing, very few homes have air conditioning. Usually we get a spell of 32 - 34 degree weather (which is about 98 - 100) for about four days in the mid summer. But this year, we've had two spells and are heading into a third. I'm hoping this isn't going to be an ongoing condition. When I'm hot I'm not motivated. All I do is mope around the house whining about the heat and how it's draining me and I can't sleep and on and on. There's something about cold that energizes. You come in from the cold and you slap your mittens together and ask, with a sparkle in your eye, 'cold enough for you?'. You don't get that kind of energy when it's hot outside. I love the summer and look forward to it but I enjoy the winter as well. I'm thankful for the weather and the changes. The other day I was bringing some stuff away on the quad, wearing shorts and a tank top and sandals, I remembered driving over the self-same terrain five months previous wearing Sorel boots (good to minus 40), fur lined mittens (some beaver sacrificed his life so I could have warm hands), four layers of clothing, a fur lined hat (rabbit this time) and a scarf covering any possible exposed skin on my face, leaving a slit for my eyes. Some contrast. I think it's the variety that keeps us going up here. For now I'm just going to drag myself through these dog days and hope we get a good cracking thunderstorm to break the heat wave. Then I can enjoy summer again.

ConGradulations

2006-07-05T06:46:00.000-07:00

The grad season is over now. We had two nephews graduate - one from Grade Nine the other from Grade Twelve. I attended the Grade Nine grad and got to hear one of the young graduates introduce a fellow classmate by telling us about a poem she had 'wroten'. I'm thinking a few more English classes might be in order. I'm thinking his teachers might either be shaking their heads or squirming. I'm thinking this is funny.

The play by play of Grade Twelve Grad will have to wait until my husband returns from a horse packing slash hiking trip he took to the mountains. I'll find out then because my husband picked up a number of celebrating graduates, including two nephews, at about 4:00 a.m.,the morning after Grad. He and his brother (father of said nephews) packed the boys and assorted friends who were also celebrating, into trucks and headed to the mountains where they would unload the horses, unload the boys, saddle up and head down the trail. No mercy shown to celebrants, I am sure.

But this grad season made me think of my favourite grad story. It has drama, tears, conflict, dilemma's, disasters - and that was just picking out the dress pattern. You see, I made both my daughter's grad dresses. (In Canada, at least western Canada - we call it Grad - Americans would call it Prom). The first one went without a hitch. The second one. . . . cue the drums.

We bought the pattern, measured, decided which size, bought the three layers of material - lining, shiny layer, sparkly layer - I boldy started cutting, then sewed up the lining, then tried said lining on my daughter and - - - the dress was too small. All the material had been cut and sewn. The nearest material shop was 140 klicks away. I sighed, then told my daughter we had two options. Buy a dress, or she could try to lose weight. Being Dutch, she chose the cheaper option. Back to the sewing machine while daughter walked and dieted and was quite proud of her new physique. Then I had to tell her to stop because the dress was now getting too big.

Finally the dress was done, it looked perfectly shiny and spangly and lovely. The day had arrived as days like this usually do. With minor panic. My husband and I were in a hurry, daughter was in a hurry to get to the hairdresser, son was wandering around asking dumb questions like 'where is my shirt?'. Daughter wantd the dress ironed before she left. So I turned on the iron, ran back to the bathroom to deal with my dripping hair, ran back to the ironing board, picked up the iron - can you guess where this is going? - put the iron down on the dress and screamed as the iron melted the dress. Hole 4 x 5 , left flank.

I said some bad words, my daughter's face looked like someone had knocked the wind out of her. Then I cried and my dear daughter who should have been the one crying, put her arm around my shoulder and told me it was all right. I was so proud of her in that moment.

The only saving grace was that I had melted the shiny layer of the three layers. I patched it with trembling fingers as I tried not to let the clock's relentless ticking make me make yet another drastic mistake. The spangly layer went over top and, huge relief. You could only see the patch if you looked very close.

Of course, my daughter, having a sense of humour as well as a sense of grace, had to show her classmates the patch and tell the story. It made a good grad story and she told it with zeal.

And I'm telling it now.

2006-06-20T04:08:00.000-07:00

Why am I so sad
Why am I so blue
The Oilers lost the cup
To Carolina, true,

This shouldn’t really matter
My deadline is still looming
And it isn’t natural to be playing indoors on ice
While outside the pansies are blooming

Okay, so it isn’t Wordsworth. Or even Seuss, but it’s the cry of my heart and that’s gotta mean something.

And now . . . (Scriptural sigh) it’s over. I haven’t had any stake in the Stanley Cup for many years so the past few weeks have been a wild ride. Probably a good thing the Oilers have been in a bit of a slump in the years since I started writing. I get emotionally involved in the games and the players. When the Oilers win, I write well. When they don’t, I just write. There’s a reason we don’t have television. I would be the one intent on the game, remote in hand, while my husband dawdled around, whining ‘honey, come to bed.’

As a young girl I used to watch television, hands clasped, leaning as close to the television as my vigilant mother would let me, praying (yes, I’m shallow) that my team would win. I didn’t understand why God wouldn’t be rooting for my team. They were the best. They were the deserving ones. And yet, when I would see the dejection of the teams that my guys finished wiping the ice with, I couldn’t help feeling bad for them as well.

So I’m reaching back to those more innocent emotions and trying to be happy for the ‘Canes and the fans who might be as superficial in their intercessory prayers as I was. And happy for the editor of Beckett Hockey Monthly who cavalierly predicted the Hurricanes victory only to cringe when the Oilers made their startling come-back. Being happy for these people is the Christian thing to do. At least I didn’t kick the cooler across the kitchen like my nephew did. (Mind you, my son has my cooler and I was in sock feet. So, no kicking.)

I just wish my dad could have seen his beloved team make their unprecedented run to the cup.

And now it’s time to pay attention to that looming deadline and get back to more important things. Like trying to find emotionally gripping ways to say, “She walked down the hall”.

2006-06-14T13:04:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up Saturday was a day indelibly connected to Hockey. Sitting on the 'high stool' in a flanellette nightgown as mother tortured our fresh-from-the-bath hair into pin curls for Sunday - watching Hockey Night in Canada with Foster Hewitt announcing the play by play. Ducking whenever Eddy Shack from the Toronto Maple Leafs decided to get into yet another fight with John Ferguson of the Montreal Canadians (or Habitants) because Mom would be cheering them on, waving the tail comb dangerously close to our heads. We cheered for Toronto because they were the closest team to us out here in Western Canada. Then when Edmonton got their own Oilers, we switched allegiances. Natch. When I got married, my husband and I decided to forego the dubious pleasures of television which meant no more hockey. Then, when our children were younger a friend took pity on us and donated a television to our household just in time for my children to watch the Edmonton Oilers, helmed by Wayne Gretzky, begin a winning streak that, for some reason, made us proud even though the only contribution we made to their wins was to watch them on television and yell 'shoot, shoot'. Important, but, I'm sure, had a minimal impact on their success or lack of.

Now, after a fourteen year dearth of even getting a whiff of the Stanley Cup, here are the Oilers on the brink. Can they pull it off? Why do I still care? I don’t know. I haven't watched hockey for years. I’ve never met these people and will probably never get to. But the colours on their sweaters are familiar and a part of my children’s childhood. My two sons are avid fans and I’m sure they are sending enough ‘positive vibes’ out to their beloved Oilers that mom doesn’t need to join in. My nerves can’t take it anymore. I’ll find out tomorrow.

2006-06-06T14:02:00.000-07:00

Life is bad for you

Now what are we supposed to do?

I just read, in my morning newspaper that chemicals used in water bottles cause prostate cancer. SO, that means that bottled water, that elixir of good health, that pinnacle of all that is pure and good, is really bottled evil. Death waiting to happen. They will now have to put a warning sign on the bottled water. (Warning – drinking this pure spring water can and/or may possibly cause some form of cancer)

Why am I not surprised? Daily reading of the newspaper will tell you that overall, living is very bad for you, because living causes death. It’s a tragedy. Meaningless, meaningless, all is meaningless and chasing after the wind, as the Teacher says in Ecclesiastes. Everything you do, everything you come into contact with is, in one form or another, bad for you. Aspirin is bad for you. Cars are bad for you. Chocolate is bad for you. (though I would dispute the science on that one). We may as well pack it in right now because life is going to end one way or the other.

The trouble is I LIKE life. I like the idea that I can wake up in the morning and do . . . well . . . things. I like being alive. I don’t like stubbing my toe or cutting my finger with my very sharp Cutco knives. (Warning – Cutco knives can cause grave bodily injury when not used correctly) But even as I see the blood flowing into the sink it reminds me that I am alive. That I can look out the window and see the little birds chirping on the branches then see them take off and fly right into my window because I forgot to put a warning sign on my window. (Warning – used improperly this window can cause flying death to any bird who thinks they might be able to go through it)

Life is fraught with dangers. To add bottled water to the list, well, so be it. I’m just thankful I don’t have a prostate.

2006-05-16T08:45:00.000-07:00

anger management

I know that my character is being bandied about some office somewhere in Edmonton and I can't even defend myself.

It all started when I pulled my not-going-to-replace-until-it-dies-out-of-principle mini van up to the entrance of a parkade in downtown Edmonton and slowed down to make sure I could go in. And in those few split seconds a car pulled up behind me horn blasting. Naturally I think something is wrong. Maybe my van is too high? I look again. Looks fine. I go ahead. Car horn starts up again. Obviously something is really wrong. I open my door to check when the man in the car behind me comes storming out of his car angrily throwing words out that I mostly hear in cows-out-of-the-fence situations, demanding to know why I was parking in this private parkade? He threw a few expletive deleted's along with making his prounouncement longer than it needed to be. I remained calm and told him I was directed, by my chiropractor, to go to a reserved spot somewhere in the parkade. He cranked his voice up a few more decibels and suddenly it was my fault that he was going to be late for work never mind that his informing me that he was going to be late for work was in all likelihood . . . . making him late for work.

I was surprised at the volume and intensity of his ire. Surely this wasn't a situation worthy of such dedication? But he seemed to think so, as he waved his arms and added a few more unnecessary words.

So I looked at him and told him that he should maybe go back to his car and have his nervous breakdown there and as for me, I was going to close my door and carry on. Which I did. At my own speed. Of course as soon as he could possibly squeeze past me he did, tires squealing and, I'm sure, more expletives filling the small space of his car.

What a sad situation. The day was a glorious spill of sunshine, welcome after a number of cloudy, rainy days. It was early morning and this poor man had to start his day blaming someone else for his problems. Loudly. And, I'm sure, he is telling his story to his co-workers, shaking his head over this woman who had the audacity to hold him up by actually slowing down to enter a parkade.

So I thought I would tell my side of the story. Just because I can. As for the man, he still makes me laugh. I doubt he can say the same for me. Poor man.

And now a word . . . .

2006-05-04T09:36:00.000-07:00

All my life, one of my biggest adventures was opening new scribblers and seeing that blank page waiting for me the first stroke of my pencil or pen. I loved the way some of the pages were still stuck together and I was the first one to peel them apart and put my own mark on the emptiness.

I feel the same way now, starting this blog. I called it Words in the Wind, because I'm a writer. Writers throw words out onto paper, onto computer screens, into the air and then we sit back and see how they feel, how they look, how they sound. On a good day, some will stay where they are. On a bad day, most will disappear. Like Words in the Wind.

I'm not sure what shape this blog will take. I know there are profound blogs out there, blogs that make you think and blogs that make you laugh. Most likely this one will not have that form. Most likely it will be about things that are on my mind or something I came across. Most likely it will be slightly humorous one time and not the next. That's my life. A flash of humour, a dash of profound and a lot of mundane.

Today, the mundaneness of my head cold precludes profound. Today, I'm just starting. Today, this is truly, just words in the wind.