28 going on...28

Each year my birthday creeps up faster and faster. I remember being 12, and counting down the days from February until my May 27th birthday. I remember thinking how different life would be when I was 13. The funny part is that it really didn't change a whole lot. I was miraculously the same person, at 13, on May 28, that I was at age 12, on May 26.

In fact, I always sort of felt like it took me a while to "grow into" my age. When someone would remind me that I was 13, or 16, or 18, or 21, it felt like that age was beyond my reach, and that I surely would have to grow up some to fit it. As I entered my twenties, I always felt this driving pressure to be older, to adjust to my age. I felt driven in my education, my career, my relationship...I felt driven financially to become the adult that everyone clearly expected me to be.

28 feels different. I look around, and I see my home. Yes, I love my home. I treasure it. It's not big, and it needs work, but I adore this little house. I love my husband. I love my career, and I love that it is currently on hold while I wait for my next adventure--motherhood. I have great friends, and my health is ever-improving.

For the first time in my life, though, I feel older than my age.

Not in a bad way. I guess I maybe just feel like I'm on pace, or maybe even a little ahead of the game. I'm really not, but I feel like the last two years have been absolutely crazy. I went from being engaged to no longer being a "newlywed". I went from being childless, to "expecting". I went from being relatively new to my career, to being someone who got a phone call just the other day from another practitioner, because she needed to refer a client to someone more "experienced". What a trip.

I drive a minivan.

It's all downhill from here. So, I might as well throw my arms up and scream with glee. :P

Returning from my hiatus...

Hello, all.

So, I'm back. My personal life pretty much imploded there for a little while, and I needed a little time to get my head together, but I think I'm ready to start blogging again. I'm sure you're all breathing a collective sigh of relief. Control yourselves.

So, as I said, things got a little hairy...There were some definite family issues happening, not the least of which included my mother being diagnosed with colon cancer, from which, after surgery, she is recovering nicely. My hubby and I area also adopting, as I've mentioned, and it is a journey not for the faint of heart. Every day I become a little more emotionally invested, and I am falling in love with these little people who I don't even know yet...I never thought I could love anything this much. Ever. And I haven't even seen them yet. However, the process is harrowing, and I suppose on some level, it is meant to make you grateful for these amazing little creatures, who we have the honor of raising into big creatures. I will say this, though. If the government were any slower, they'd be moving backward.

Our particular type of adoption is classified as "public domestic", meaning we are adopting children who are in the care of the provincial government currently (in foster care). The ages range from babies to 16 year olds. They are special kids, who need a lot of love. There are 22000 kids in care in Canada. 1500 will find permanency. I was presented with that statistic a mere 3 days ago, and keep rolling it over in my mind, hoping for it to sound better. It never gets better. That is simply too many children, not enough willing parents.

In other news, my yard is getting more gorgeous, day by day. Yesterday I finished perfecting my compost and adding a bit of starter to it, and we have planted some lovely fruit trees in the hopes of having a small orchard in our ordinary suburban yard. I am loving playing in the dirt more and more every day. It's so rewarding somehow.

Anyway, the things that are consuming me at the moment have a lot to do with my kids, so bear with me. I know what it's like to listen to expectant mothers talk about nothing but their children...I'm not medically pregnant, but I am emotionally pregnant. So, here is a little something to show that I understand:

Honestly, who throws a shoe...er...or two?

Well, for starters, this guy does:

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/14/bush.iraq/?imw=Y&iref=mpstoryemail

Is it wrong that I'm having trouble caring? Is it even more wrong that I wish the man hadn't missed??

I guess I'm not exactly in favour of randomly throwing shoes at world leaders. But seriously, what if they really, really deserve it???

As much as it leaves a bad taste in my mouth to do so, I have to give Dubya props for handling this thing like a champ. Not only does he appear to have mastered the ol' "bob an' weave" (perhaps he's never been particularly well-liked?), but when the Secret Service appeared to want to usher Dubya away into a safe area, Ye Ol' President raised a hand and shook his head, in a sort of "I'm fine, don't be silly" way. He was also quoted as saying, "So what if the guy threw a shoe at me?" This tells me one of two things. Either, he was truly sympathetic that perhaps the citizens of Iraq had been put through enough at his hand, and maybe he deserved having a shoe or two catapulted at his head, or maybe he didn't want the last moments of his presidency to be marred the image of him being a big, weenie, 'fraidy-cat. Although, for some reason, my instinct tells me that it might just be the latter.

Apparently, from a cultural perspective, shoes, being the lowest thing to the ground, are considered dirty, and are the filthiest, most vile symbol of disgust that one could present. Whilst throwing said footwear, the journalist, Muntadhar al-Zeidi, was also quoted as saying, "This is your farewell kiss, you dog!", and "This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq."

Hmm. Perhaps he was just saying what the rest of the world was thinking.

Thanks for nothin', Asshole. Don't let the door hit you in the ass. Or do. Either way.

'Tis the Season to be Hoodwinked, Part Deux

So, as a follow up to this post:

http://twigsandroots.blogspot.com/2008/11/tis-season-to-be-hood-winked.html ,

I just have a visual statement:




Ugh. That's all I have to say.

By the way, this is outside the store that I work at. I get to look at it all. Day. Long. Gah.

Peace.

Reprieve

So, it seems that GG Madame Michaelle Jean has granted Harper's request to prorogue parliament until January 27th. I don't know much more than that at the moment, however.

I'm not sure that suspending parliament at a time of economic distress is such a good idea, but it certainly wasn't tenable as it was, so I suppose this is the only answer at the moment. Maybe by January, they'll all pull their heads out of their asses and calm down. Both sides have done one hell of a job spinning this thing, and frankly, I can't stand any of them right now.

I am really hoping that things turn out for the best, but this is really just stop-gap. The problem is still underlying, and no one is sure how to pull out this particular splinter, so for now, we're just band-aiding it and hoping for the best.

May cooler heads prevail. I guess we'll find out January 27th.

The Fall of the Canadian Government

http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/archives/2008/12/03/what_is_happening_in_canada.html

So, I was going to try and explain this whole mess, but I could not match the description given above. She did a phenomenal job.

Basically, my country's government is about to fall, one way or a-tuther as I see it. I really don't envy the position of Governor General Madame Michaelle Jean.

Let me just say this about that. I am torn. Completely. First, I don't think a minority government is an effective way to govern, since motions are either passed by threat, or not at all. So, either nothing gets done, or the ruling party has the ability to really screw everyone over. In short, I blame our lazy-ass non-voting populace for getting us into this mess. Even had it been a Conservative majority, at least we wouldn't be in this position.

I don't want our government disrupted in any way right now, because I know that the economy is in trouble...The TSX is plummeting, and I don't personally believe that GG Jean dropping the election writ, or handing the keys over to the Liberals is necessarily a good idea at the moment.

Here's the thing, this article makes a strong point. The vast majority of Canadians (as in 2/3's) did NOT vote for this Conservative government. However, the majority of Canadians also did not vote Liberal, NDP, Bloc Quebecois, or Green. I am a Green party supporter, being a staunch lefty, but even I am able to take a step back at this moment and see the problem here. I voted Green. I did not vote Liberal, NDP, etc. I am an educated voter, as well, and so there was a reason why I did not vote for those parties. They are simply not aligned with my values in the same fashion that are the Greens. Therefore, the Libs are not, in fact, representative of my values.

Another problem, as I see it, is the current Liberal leadership. I might be more open to this coalition if the Libs had already run their leadership race, and Stephane Dion had been replaced by Michael Ignatieff, which I suspect would have happened. My problem with Stephane Dion is not his moral fibre; rather, from everything I've heard, read, etc., he seems like not only a man of integrity, but a kind and genuine person. The problem, I believe, comes from the fact that he is very entrenched in Academia, having been a long-time University professor, and as far as I know, his actual experience as far as relating to the average person with a job and a family is minimal at best. I want him teaching me political science, not practicing it on Parliament Hill. I do wish him the very best, though.

I also am not in favour of corporate bailouts. I frankly have a bit of a problem with the fact that when times are hot, Capitalists tout the virtues of the free market, but when that free market falls (as any free market will--there WILL be boom and bust cycles, period), all of a sudden they have their hands out for money from the taxpayers. Sorry folks, but if you liked it so much when times were good, you should have been a good little squirrel and put away money for a rainy day, and maybe invested in updating your product (bio-diesel vehicles anyone?). I'm no economist, but it seems to me that whether you are running a household, a government, or a business, it should always be on the principle of saving when things are good to help you through the bad times.

Am I happy that people will lose their jobs if these companies bankrupt? No, of course not. This system is not set up, though, to support long-term industry, and anything based on a non-renewable resource is at risk. The question would only have been whether it would have tanked today or a couple of years down the road. From destruction comes rebirth, like the larch tree growing up out of the remnants of a forest fire. I would prefer to see my tax dollars going toward helping those people to pay their bills in the meantime and find a career in a more long-term industry than toward a bunch of CEO's that want $5M golden parachutes when they finally decide to stop billing the company hourly for their golf games.

This having been a fairly major issue to inspire the non-confidence vote to begin with, I have to say that I'm with the Conservatives on this particular issue. If this is a free market, then it is. If it is not, then with your bailout, you better expect us to regulate the hell out of your ass, including enforcing anti-trust laws, which have been long ignored by way of loopholes and subsequent precedents, deciding on the payscale of the executives, and regulating the implementation of employee benefits, ensuring that companies must provide adequate benefits, regular pay raises, and adequate family time, while also ensuring that a large percentage of profits are overturned into the re-investment into sustainable product and industrial practices.

Just my opinion. :S

Anyone who knows me knows how much I DON'T want to agree with the Conservatives. But I have to agree with them on this one. You can't spend your way out of a recession, and I really do believe that we have to tighten our belts, and worry about looking after PEOPLE with our limited resources, rather than corporations and (pardon the rhetoric) the fat cats that haven't had to work for their money for the last 3 decades.

While we're at it, how about making sure that there are some concessions made to shrink the government a bit, shedding some dead weight. I could think of at least 3 families and small businesses that could use that income more than an 85 year old wealthy Senator who hasn't shown up for work in twenty years.

P.S.- If you know his address, maybe you should swing by his place to check on him. Just a thought.

We'll know what's going on by Monday. If you're from here, I'm sure you're glued to CBC. If you're not, wish us luck. This could be a bumpy ride. :S

Oh, and if you didn't vote?

Go fuck yourself.

These are a Few of my Favorite Things...

You know that Christmas song that plays obnoxiously in every mall this time of year?

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes...

Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes...

Yup, you know what I'm talking about. Well, first, for those of you who don't know, that wasn't some contemporary ballad written to sell electronic gaming systems. It is a classic song, from a "The Sound of Music", and in its day, was fantastic.

I guess I should probably update my blog profile, because another very important fact about me is that I'm a total theater geek. I did musical theater in my city for years, some amateur, some professional. I'm a singer first, though, and was raised by a musician who instilled in me a love for music. I learned the piano, guitar and learned to sing. My skills on the piano and guitar are questionable at best, but I still love to sing. I try to maintain a healthy amount of shame, however, and do not play the piano or guitar in public unless absolutely necessary.

Anyway, with that little part of my autobiography out of the way, on to the purpose of this post. I'm not Oprah, but in the spirit of yesterday's American Thanksgiving, I'm going to give a little shout out and a little appreciation for some of my favorite things. Alas, there are too many to list here, but these are a few that are on my mind these days.

1) Waking up before the alarm goes off. What an entirely different start to the day that is.

2) A fire in the fireplace. I love the warmth of the hearth and the feeling of contentedness that it brings.

3) The smell of fresh cinnamon rolls. Mmmmm....

4) The smell of any home-cooked meal cooking. My next endeavour will be a hearty beef stew...I think I might be hungry.

5) A really good Merlot.

6) Pubs with close friends, drinking rum and shooting the shit.

(OK, enough with the food and alcohol. I do other things besides eating and boozing, I swear!)

7) Kitty snuggles.

8) Clean sheet day! Woohoo! Clean sheet day! :D

9) A hot bath, with any possible luxury, including candles, bath pillows, epsom salts and aromatherapy.

And maybe some wine. OK, NOW I'm done with the booze.

10) Good conversations. :)

May we all learn to practice more of an attitude of gratitude!

Cheers! :)