hallowe'en candy

In the news tonight was a segment about how some people are handing out healthy snacks for 'Hallowe'en candy'. Indeed, some people aren't even handing out candy, but have stocked up on stickers and little toys instead. As someone who used to be diasppointed with those little boxes of raisins (no matter how good they actually were, they were not candy or chocolate), I say piffle. One of the highlights of this Hallowe'en Season - I was actually wished a Happy Hallowe'en twice today - are those wonderful packages of little chocolate bars. Except that those mini Mars Bars are so mini now that I end up eating six times a many as I would have normally to get my fix.

A friend of mine was all flustered over her kids' costumes - one is going out as a ladybug, another as a gingerbread man. She could have bought the suits, but decided she could make them just as easily. Well, sorry, nothing is just as easy as buying a ready made suit. Anyway, I'm sure they will be cute. Her eldest son is going as a Mad Man, specifically, Don Draper. I don't think he actually knows who Don Draper is, except that his parents keep referencing him and he gets to wear his grey ring bearer's suit from a summer wedding he was a part of. It may be his last chance to wear it, so he has been granted his wish. He has a dark blue pillow case for his loot bag and she has written Crown Royal on it in elegant gold script.

We got to talking about the costumes of our childhood (mine in the 60s, hers in the early 80s). And the tears when the wonderful costume had to be covered up with a winter coat or rain jacket against the cold and damp.

Gone are the days of putting an old bedsheet over yourself and calling yourself a ghost. Or wearing your dad's old shirt and becoming a hobo. It turns out she does not remember those decorated plastic poncho like thingies that we wore, along with the plastic masks that made your face sweat.

Really, those ready made costumes have come a long way, baby.

I remember going as Zorro, at least once, but I believe I just had a mask and a towel wrapped over my shoulders and a silver foil covered umbrella to brandish about as a sword. Maybe I might have had something similar to this Lone Ranger costume, but I doubt it. Surely I had nothing this cheesy?
And just in case the hair wasn't enough (and yes, I did have Farrah Fawcett Hair) this dreadful depiction has a photo AND a name to let the candy giver know exactly who you were.

I don't get any trick or treaters at my door, but I do have a bowlful of candy. I even found one of those candy necklaces that were so much fun to wear to school and slowly destroy by eating piece by piece. But I won't be dressed up. Then again, will my penguin decorated flannel pajamas count? I understand it will be close to freezing on Sunday night. Hot chocolate and mini Mars bars. Yum.

Monday AMuse

I have been going to see a few plays in Stratford (Ontario) this past summer and have just about fallen in love with the place. It is a lovely town, on the Avon River.

Mostly it is known for the Shakespeare Theatre Festival it holds every summer which attracts many tourists and prominent actors.

It is also the birthplace of a certain teen sensation... who has written an autobiography that is worthy of a reading by a prominent Canadian actor
(as seen on a satirical television news show, This Hour Has 22 Minutes)

my eyes are resting

I am still kicking around, although you may not have seen much of my presence of late. Work has gotten a bit out of hand. It has zapped me of my wakefulness and energy. And my muse.

Being useful makes me feel good. I usually like being able to help people out. Then there is the asking of help with your deliveries while you are on holidays in Georgia, or North Carolina or wherever, and having the suggested 80 newspapers balloon into 145........ I am exhausted from helping you out.

I fell asleep on the couch with the tv on - again. Actually, the on/off button on the remote is still broken, so the tv is almost always on as I am too lazy to actually wander over to the set and find the little on/off button to turn it off (or unplug it). Anyway, just wondering.... can anybody out there explain the attraction of the Jersey Shore?

Anybody?

I didn't think so.

My eyes need more rest.

Monday AMuse

This has been around for awhile, but I just discovered it, so maybe it will also be new and amusing for some of you.

sitting one out

There was a brief moment of breath holding. We were both sitting at a patio. Someone I have not seen for many years - how long has it been anyway? 10 years at least, I'm sure. There is a reason we have not seen each other, yet it surprises me a little that we have never run each each other until now.
There was no sign of recognition. No flicker of of the eyes, or a quick turn of the head to follow my progress to the table in the sunny corner. Nothing to show that I was at all familiar. I was ignored and I ignored back.
I read my book, drank my coffee and listened to their conversation. It was not enlightening, nor even remotely interesting. I thought about how I would respond when I got up to leave. Would I be tempted to nudge the chair as I squeezed past? Would my bag accidentally hit a head? Would I stand in front of the table, directly in line of vision and dare to be noticed? Would I deign to speak?
But I realized there was no desire for contact. There was really nothing I wanted to say.
That feeling in the pit of my stomach never actually materialized.
And that felt good.

Except, how could I not be recognized???

Monday AMuse

Something to do when all the pumpkin pie is gone and the turkey, or tofurkey has been eaten


this is so cool

click here for link, then click on PLAY. take your hand of the mouse and sit back and enjoy.



Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating today!

it all started with a little bang

...actually, it all started with a little squeal. Then it progressed to a screeching. By then I had checked my calendar and picked a day to have my car's brakes looked at. Suddenly, overnight, it had become a grinding that got worse with every press of the brake pedal. Several hundred dollars later (including a rental for a day) and I was thinking that, yes, that other contract job I'd been offered was going to be pretty useful.

Someone asked me, just days before all this happened, if I knew a good mechanic. Well, yes, I did and I was happy to send some business his way. I told this person where he could find my good mechanic. "Is he any good", was his next question. Huh? Even if I didn't like you that much, do you honestly think I would rather give an unscrupulous mechanic (and there are many of them out there, I'm sure) more business? But, I like my mechanic. Saturdays are a little iffy, but mostly he is available. It is a small garage with just two people so there is no towing service, or courtesy car, but he does seem to be reliable. He explains only enough so that my eyes don't glaze over. I don't get the broken bits returned to me, like another garage used to do, but I'm fine with that. He knows what kind of work I do and takes that into consideration. If he finds something else that needs fixing immediately, he'll just go ahead and do it. If it can wait, he'll warn me to have it done in the near future. If it can't wait, but he is too busy, he'll call up another neighbourhood garage and send me there. He knows I am trying to sleep during the day, so doesn't bother me with phone calls to ask what he should do - I tell him to make my car better and leave him to it. Many's the time the car was left in the lot for me to pick up after hours; he knew I would return the next day to settle up. Try doing that with a big name automotive service centre.

Actually, my custom with Dan was sealed when another car I owned developed a problem with the battery. I knew it was the battery because, apart from the usual signs and symptoms, every time the car died and I recharged the battery it would work. But the charge didn't last very long. This happened when I was heading out to see a new client. It was a little embarrassing, being so late, then having to get her neighbour to give me a boost while I frantically called CAA for help. She was very understanding about it all. The big name automotive centre I tried was less interested in selling and installing a new battery than in performing a 'diagnostic test' to determine if the thing was indeed dead. And that would take time because there was a line up before me. They had a routine to follow. Just like when I needed a plug in my front left tire, a ten minute fix had to take 1 1/4 hours while they did their full feature routine (for which they charged extra). But it was a Sunday of a holiday weekend and I had little option. Anyway, I got my car to Dan's a couple miles down the road and he took one look at the battery and pronounced it as good as dead. Just to show me how little juice it had he attached some machine to it. In less than half an hour I was on my way and he was back at work on one of the other cars up on the hoist. The whole thing cost less than the 'diagnostic test' from Canadian Tire the other big name automotive centre.

Has anyone else noticed how many winter tire commercials are already on TV? I guess that will be the next big expense.

In other news, I have suddenly discovered just how funny The Big Bang Theory is. Apparently I have three seasons to catch up on. That would be two seasons of 23 espisodes and one season of 17, at approximately 23 minutes each. That is a total of 63 episodes. For 23 hours. I was up most of last night working on that by watching it on the internet.

One should not eat nuts while watching this show. Choking may occur.

Monday AMuse

Visual Art by the Human Body