Update

Yeah, so the appointment with the neurologist is done. The actual nerve test is scheduled for Aug 1.

A friend of my boyfriend has to put her cat down today -kidney failure. My heart breaks for her right now. I want to go home and hug my kitties right now. :(

Scrap Happy

Well the weekend flew by...and a tired Monday ensued. The Mill River retreat was awesome! Brandi & Ang picked me up after work on Friday and we headed on our way. A quick stop at the Frosty Treat in K-Town and then to O'Leary we went. The official weekend wasn't really starting til Saturday morning, but they had a crop for Friday night for those interested, so we felt it would be easier to go early than get up at the crack of crow pee & drive in Saturday morning. I had many laughs, spent too much money (whoopsie - can I help it if the Scrap Shack has a lot of different (lovely) product that required snatching up?), and had a ton of fun! I'm quite tired today...never sleep well if I'm not in my own bed. It was worth it. I didn't get as many layouts completed as I would have liked, but the ones I did do are quite nice, if I do say so myself. As soon as I have a chance to sit down and try to learn how to post pics I'll post some on here, I promise.

Sunday night I finally got to watch my taped Bachelor Finale. I'm so glad that Tessa was the final girl. I know it's a dumb show, but I get caught up in the drama. It's like reading a dumb book...escape from reality. I have one beef though...Bevin came to the aftershow with a hot pink cast, adorned with rhinestones (gag)...advising the public that 'yes, it was really broken'. Isn't the aftershow taped after all the other shows...and didn't the 'accident' happen early in the season, and wasn't she walking around without her brace (hiking, even?) AFTER? ...and now she's in a pretty pink cast? Things that make you go hmmmm....? And I laughed out loud at the sight of Andy running on the beach in all his rippled glory...Did you ever see the Friends episode when Phoebe took up running?...and she ran carefree, like a young child? Reminiscent of that. If you didn't see the Friends episode to which I'm referring, then it could also be compared to attempting to run with a large pole up one's buttocks...all the while the pole is shoved up yonder, one is also sucking in one's abs as far as one could go...and one's arms are flailing out on either side of oneself. Get the imagery?

Enough.

So I have my first appointment with the doctor who's going to be arranging nerve tests on my wrists for a possible carpal tunnel thing. The surgeon who referred me to this guy left the impression that today's appointment was the actual nerve testing...but when the nurse called me to remind me of today's appointment she advised it was just a 'consult', and that the nerve tests themselves had to be scheduled after that. How much *MORE* time will I have to wait to end the pain? 5 mos just to get the consult. That makes me angry. One of the downs of having free medical care. I think I'll publish this post now before I get cranky.

I'm a dotcom!

Cheerio peeps; sorry I've been slack. I've been busy. Mandatory OT at work this week, and out visiting my bro/sis-law the past few nights, so not a lot of time to post. Tonight I've opted to stay in, try to get some laundry done (I should name this the laundry blog as it seems all I talk about is doing laundry :P), and pack for Mill River!!! Ang, Brandi, Maria and I are going to the Mill River Resort to partake in the Scrap Shack's Weekend Getaway, scrap-style! I'm sooo pumped! The official weekend starts Saturday morning, but we're going out Friday night to crop. Hopefully I'll get a lot done! Mummy gave me money for my birthday to support this event, otherwise, I wouldn't be able to go....so THANK YOU MUMMY. I love you very much!

Chris informed me that he has pointed this blog to www.ambermanuel.com. He had bought this domain for me our first year together as a Christmas present. We had plans to set up a website, and well, I'm a wee bit on the green side technically (still-haven't-figured-out-how-to-post-pics- on-my-blog :( kinda green), so he asked if I wanted this blog to point toward that site, since I've actually been posting regularly, so I said sure. Kinda neat; easier to let people know where to go to read this mundane drivel :). Enjoy...comment...make it known that someone actually reads this thing!

In other news, I was picked out of 400 others for a quote contest on Lisa Bearnson's blog! (http://www.lisabearnson.com/blog/). There was a total of 25 winners, and we're all receiving the Quickutz cookbook (http://www.quickutz.com/kidsfromhaiti/), plus another 'little goodie' from Lisa. The cookbook will be autographed by Lisa herself, and Natasha Hixon, founder of Quickutz. I'm so excited! The quote I used was found on a friend's website. I'd heard of part of it before - think maybe she added to it. I read it, loved it, and put it to memory, and thought I'd take a chance at the contest: "In life, take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've never been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back". Apt words to live by :) The cookbooks go toward such a wonderful cause too, so I'll be proud to own one!

Catching up

It's been a few days since my last post...I've been a busy little bee! I'll try not to ramble too much.

This weekend my friend Lana was hosting a scrap weekend at her place..Friday night straight through to Monday, so I went there Friday night. It wasn't a very productive night, only accomplishing 2 cards...but they were pretty cards, and both needed for the next day, so that was a plus.

Saturday I attended a paper crafting seminar thingy with a bunch of girls from work, and we crafted all day long...making cards, a scrapbook page, a scrapped canvas, a post-it note holder and a little goodie bag. It was a large day of crafting! We dined at a local restaurant, and our welcome-in was LESS than stellar, but the food was delish. After the crafty day ended I had to rush to the grocery store, grab ingredients to make spaghetti, rush home to make said spaghetti (part of the scrap weekend attendance at Lana's being each person was responsible for one meal), change, then get to Tracy's housewarming party, and from there, get to Krissy's birthday party. It was a long day to say the least...by the time I got to Krissy's (after midnight), the guests there had already enjoyed a number of beverages - and it was a blast to witness the aftermath. If it wasn't for the need to protect the innocent, I'd even post pictures. Needless to say, it was a late night...finally hitting the pillow at about 3am.

Sunday I finally got to Lana's at about 2pm...late start due to the late night (oy...so not young anymore), but I got a good start on a little "me" project (ideas scraplifted from the lovely Lisa Bearnson! Thanks Lisa!) I guess it was 1ish by the time I hit the pillow Sunday night.

Monday I was at Lana's for about 11:30 am; a much better start :). I got a lot more done of my "Me" book, and the crafty ladies (and Bruce ;)) dined on my spaghetti before packing my scrapbags away to finish another successful crop (*note to self: my normal 'single' batch of spaghetti nicely feeds 6 bodies...there was no need of the 'double' batch of ingredients I put together and stressed over the spillage each time I tried to stir the full full full pot). I was toooo tired to venture out for the Bachelor night with the girls :(. I hope everyone had a great time, and I'll discuss the outcome when I finally get to watch it on tape. Very bummed that I missed the homemade salsa again. Boooooooo.

So here we are....Tuesday...May 22...a cold Tuesday...and I looked out the window a few hours ago to see snow...*shudders*. I have to try to get over to Mummy's to visit with Fred & Belinda who made the trip down from Ontario. BUSY day!

Finales

Well well well, that was quite a Grey's finale, wasn't it? A few things I wasn't surprised about...,but my mouth is gaping open at others! I never thought that Burke would call off the wedding! I heard a rumor that Isaiah Washington was leaving the show...I guess this is his out. NOT happy about his departure :(. And poor George...never suspected he would have failed his exam. I wonder what he will decide to do? Hopefully before Callie 'houses a baby in her womb'! *sigh* I don't wanna wait til September! I *heart* Grey's.

In other TV news, due to having to work last night, I didn't get a chance to watch ER or CSI, so I've taped them, and cannot wait to see them...more on the miniature killer on CSI. Best storyline ever! And ER has always been a favourite.

I really am a TV junkie :P

Weekend's here. I feel yuuuuuuuucky :(. I was about to leave for my lunch break last night at 4:30pm and took, what I thought, was a dizzy spell. I didn't think much of it because I do get them from time to time...but they usually pass really quickly. This one didn't. I thought maybe it was hunger, so went and ate my lunch even though I didn't feel hungry. It didn't help, and when I put my head down the room would spin. NOT nice. Miraculously, I made it through the remainder of my shift without puking, and went home to watch Grey's. When I went to lay down to sleep ....BED SPINS.......the same bed spins that come from a great night of partying...usually before a trip to the throne. I slept, puke-free....and still felt dizzy when I got up today. :S Is it a bug? Is it an allergy? Something else? I can tell you one thing...it's going to put a huge hamper on this weekend if I don't start feeling better....and that makes me so very sad and cranky :(.

Morning....er snow?

Well, here it is, May 17 - and we've already had record high temps...some reaching as high as 24 degrees....now, this morning it's 1 degree, and a light blanket of snow covering everything? What gives? I guess we got off lucky...considering the forecast was calling for up to 10 cm of the white stuff. I think Mother Nature and the groundhog are in cahoots...surely they must be soon done with their evil plan?

So it was coooooooooooold in the house this morning (being mid-May we decided it was smart to turn off the furnace). While the idea of going back to my warm bed to sleep in was so very attractive, I opted to get up, don a sweater, and make muffins :). The heat of the oven helped a bit, but I just gave in and turned the furnace on...as it was only 13 degrees in here. Brrr. I also thought I should get ahead of the laundry since this weekend is going to be insanely busy. So it's still early, and I have one load drying and one finishing it's wash cycle. Yay me. You watch though....I'll still likely be running late to get in to work. Go figure.

So it's Thursday! Greys' Season Finale!! Very much looking forward to it. It's also my final night to work the late shift at work; thanks to Melissa for needing a trade, I'm on the 8am-4:30 shift tomorrow. I hope I get to talk to less cranky, or at the very least, more intelligent, customers today. I mean, really...the full moon isn't til next week. :S :S

Have a great Thursday everyone.

Off-center

It's been a few days since my last post so I felt one was due.

Mummy loved her Mother's Day gifts. Yay for the good daughter.

Working the late shift this week at work so my routine is sleep/work/tv for about an hour while falling asleep on couch/sleep/work, etc. So, nothing much to report. I'm having a day where I would have benefitted from staying home under the covers, however. You know how it is...a day where you just can't seem to get anything right? A day where everything you do seems to take multiple tries to get it accomplished? Yeah, well, welcome to my Wednesday.

BUSY weekend ahead...A crafty girl day planned Saturday day with the girls from work, a house-warming party for Tracy Saturday night, a birthday party for Krissy Saturday night, a scrap WEEKEND with Lana (allll weekend), and a visit from Fred & Belinda from Ontario. Not sure how I am going to take it all in. Too bad we as humans didn't have the capability to split ourselves into multiple persons.

Heh.

Oh, and Dear Mr. Horton...in addition to training your staff on stirring coffee, can you also PLEASE train them to toss out the burned muffins and NOT give them to the patrons? Gross!

Tribute to all Mothers

I just wanted to send a message to all the "moms" I know; you know who you are, Happy Mothers Day! I'm glad that there is one special day a year to dedicate just to our Moms. Those who brought us to life, sheltered us from harm, and let us go out into the real world to experience freedom and make our own mistakes in this thing called 'life'.

I always called my mother 'mom' growing up. When Dad was sick in hospital and my sister came to PEI to be here for it she started calling Mom "Mummy" - and it sort of stuck. Was it because of the circumstances bringing us to where we were most vulnerable, needing our guardian to once again protect us from our sadness? I'm forever grateful that she was there, and still is....I love you Mom/Mummy.

I finished my little project to give to my mom for Mother's Day. It's a 'scrapbook in a box'...saw other blogs refer to it as an 'explosive' box. It looks like a 'gift box', but when you remove the cover, it opens into a little album with many sides. I added photos of all of us, even a few recent shots of Mom; she'll hate me for them. I think it turned out nice. I also made a card. I also bought a Boyd's ornament to add to her collection.

On that note, I must bid adieu to go see my Mummy for Mother's Day.

P.S. Chris seems to think it's silly that I should also feel it fitting to celebrate today too. I am the Mother of my two furbabies. What do you think? I'm their Mummy. I feed them, clean up after them, shelter them from harm, provide them a warm place to sleep. I just think he didn't want to go buy a gift 'from them' for me today. El cheapo :P

P.P.S. Dear Mr. Horton, will you please PLEASE train your staff to STIR the coffee before throwing it out the window at your patrons?

Yay for Friday

Well, the weekend is almost here. I work the late shift today so my weekend doesn't really start til 9:15 tonight. Class last night was a little challenging, but the scrapbook in a box that we made was cute in the end. I still have to decorate some more, and add some photos. I do still hope to have it completed for Sunday as I think it will be a heartfelt Mummy's Day present. I hope she agrees! As class ran over last night, I missed Greys, but of course it's taped so I hope it was good! Did watch Survivor though....wow, Yauman...giving up the truck... That's big, can't say I'd be able to do the same thing. He is a pretty tiny little man for such a big truck though ;). Glad he decided to pull out the immunity idol!

I hope everyone enjoys a fun-filled weekend, and to all the "Moms" out there, have a super-fantastic Mother's Day on Sunday!

Loaded questions

Favorite kind of cereal? Special K Vanilla Almond, or Oatmeal Crunch, Maple Nut flavored.

What animal or insect disgusts you the most? It's a toss-up between earwigs and June bugs. Likely earwigs would win though, as they have a longer 'season'. *shudders*

What do you need more of right now? I'll be selfish and put money...horrible at money-management, and I hate living in my overdraft.

What is the hardest thing for you to do? Getting my lazy buttocks back to the gym it seems.

Deodorant brand? Degree something or other.

How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? Anyone who really knows me will laugh hysterically at this question for me. You see, I have this 'routine' I follow in the morning, and I tend to get up several hours before I leave the house so I can allow for this routine (time to shower, have a coffee & breakfast, watch the morning news and/or read the paper, make lunch, do my hair/makeup, and make my bed) . Everyone thinks I'm nuts. I don't like to be rushed, and when I do oversleep and rush out the door it off-sets my whole day. Under pressure however, I can be showered, made-up and ready in about an hour, but I don't like to rush. :)

What is your most prized object? My camera, Canon PowerShot SD600; a Christmas gift from Chris. I love it.

What are you thankful you're not doing now? Visiting a sick relative in hospital.

What is your favorite drink? non-alcoholic, I like to try to drink ample water; alcoholic, cold beer is always welcomed, and I also fancy a little Kahluha...or those delish Vodka Mudslide things...yum!

Favorite way to eat potatoes? mmm...baked, with a huge helping of shredded cheddar, green onion, bacon bits and sour cream!

If you could be a character in any novel, who would you be? Kay Scarpetta, of Patricia Cornwell novels. Forensic psychology/anthropology fascinates me.

Favorite ice cream toppings? hot fudge

Where do you want to spend the rest of your life? I like PEI. Open to change, but change takes money, so I'll likely stay here.

What do you bring most to a friendship? I'm faithful, honest, caring & generous.

On a scale of 1-10, how hip are you? 5? I tend not to follow trends...dressing for comfort more than style. I try to look decent though.

What kind of music makes you want to get up and sing? the 80s because I pretty much know the lyrics to any song from that era.

What are you an expert in? I think I'm a good friend, and a good scrap-lifter ;)

What have you tried and simply were not good at? Knitting.

Favorite movie line? "You had me at hello".

What is your "theme song"? "You are the Sunshine of my Life"

If fat, calories, etc. weren't an issue, what food would you feast on? If you know me you'd realize I pretty much feast anyway, regardless of the caloric intake...heh. I will eat anything containing cream cheese or chocolate...and I'm also a carbaholic.

How much can you bench press? Been a loooooong time but I think somewhere along the lines of 20-30 lbs.

What fictional character would you like to meet? Stewie Griffin.

What is the ultimate vacation? I would love to travel all over Europe.

Whose ideas totally conflict with yours? I really can't say that I butt heads with anyone. Maybe I am too agreeable?

What cosmetic surgery would you like? Lipo--everywhere :)

What is the last movie that made your eyes tear up? "Eight Below" made me bawl like a baby.

What super-power would you like? Invisibility; just to be that proverbial 'fly on the wall' at certain times...

What would you change about your high school years? I can't think of anything I'd really change about high school. I had a good time in high school. The bench gang...need I say more?

What would you change about your appearance? my weight; I'd love to be the size I was down to in 1999 for Denise's wedding. That was so many pounds ago :(.

Would you rather be smart, rich, or beautiful? I'm already smart, and it only matters if you're beautiful to that one special person, so I will have to say rich! That'd clear up a lot of stress right now.

What room do you want to add to your home? basement. I never thought it would bother me not having a basement...but a home without one feels too much like an apartment...and allows for very very little storage capabilities.

Where do you usually buy your clothes? Old Navy, Reitmans, Cotton Ginny.

What song describes your present relationship? "The Reason" by Hoobastank

What is the nicest thing you have ever bought somebody? The scrapbook I helped make for Tanya's wedding shower was a big hit.

What do you want to change about your life? To learn to budget/money manage successfully.

Who is your best friend? I have several friends I consider my 'best friends'; not fair to name just one.

What would you like to accomplish this year? to continue evolving as a scrapbook 'artist'; I'd love to someday be published, but I don't think it'll happen in this year. It's a goal for the future, though.

What book has had the greatest impact on your life? Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus? ;)

What food do you refuse to eat? liver; just the look of it creeps me out.

What one word would you use to describe your current relationship? content

What is the best purchase you have made? I guess my house...the only equity I have.

What one word describes your life? content

sleep, interrupted

So I was sound asleep last night...when suddenly between the hours of 2 & 3 am, I was wide awake, heart-pounding awake, even....What woke me, you ask? High-pitched howling & wailing...and not by a neighborhood cat or dog! When I was more awake, I realized it was coyotes (since having the sound pointed out to me previously -- at that time, it was creepy but the sound was farther away). Last night the cries sounded like about 100 coyotes. In actuality there was likely only about 5 or 6. They sounded like they were right outside my bedroom window. The sound was terrifying. I'm surprised the cats weren't bothered by the sound. They woke up and looked around a bit but didn't tear to the window like I figured they would.

In other news, looks like the weather is going to be another beaut again today. I really should be getting my feet sandal-ready!

It's Thursday! Can't wait for Greys! I'm also going to a stamping/scrapbooking class tonight. We're making a mini album in a box. Hopefully, if it turns out well, I will have a homemade treasure to give to Mummy for Mother's Day.

Warm welcome to spring

After a rather bleak post this morning, I thought it best to submit another one, on a more 'cheery' note. Have you been outside today? Holy heck it's gorgeous! I sort of purposely 'forgot' my lunch today (truthfully a combination of the aforementioned laziness, combined with a lack of groceries), so I had to pop out to pick something up. Window down all the way, sun burning down on my arm...it was lovely (give me time, in a month or so I'll be the first to complain that it's too hot). Sadly, I had to soon return to work, so all I can do now is look out the window and wish that I was someplace else, enjoying this beautiful day. Hope you all get a chance to do just that.

Arrrghhh!

I'm just *not* in the mood for this today.

Oftentimes I have no problem faking friendly. Othertimes tho,....man!

Adding to it: my wrists hurt. It started with my right one, and now the left is bothering me too. I went to my doctor in December...he did a test on the wrist that determined, in his words, "extensive damage" and referred me to a specialist/surgeon. The specialist then decided before looking at it as a surgical case, he wanted nerve tests done - I guess to see the extent of the damage to see if surgery was the best option. Well, I finally got my appointment for the nerve test...MAY 29! *5 months* after seeing the specialist in the first place (and people wonder why we b!tch about the medical situation here). Might I add that I also had to call...repeatedly, to advise them/remind them that I was *still* waiting to hear about getting in for the nerve tests. My thought...I was forgotten about until my final 'reminder' call...when I was a little more 'lippy' than usual. GRR!

So yeah, I'm in pain...both wrists pain now, and having to work at a computer all day is only exacerbating it...so by the time I'm home from working a full 8 hour shift, I'm useless, ergo, the slacking housekeeping, and ultimate laziness that has become the norm of my life. Can't say I've ever been keen in the sense of "ooh I can't wait" when anticipating a medical appointment ever before, but I can't wait for May 29 to finally get these tests done...Then, how long do I wait for the results, and how long do I wait to get back into the original specialist, and then how long do I wait for the final 'what does he do'? *sigh*. This has turned out to be a depressing post.

Tuesday

Ok, is it just me, or did this afternoon just start CRAWLING? It's taking everything in me to keep my eyes open. I guess I should have stopped for a coffee on my way back from lunch.

What a day! So we have a snow storm in April for Easter, and now it's the 8th of May and we've got record-high temperatures. Go figure. The temp must have risen outside because the heat in the office is almost unbearable (likely attributing to the crawling afternoon).

So this weekend was a blast; a great time was had by all at the big scrapping weekend. I managed to get 7 layouts done, and even won a prize in the page contest! As if the weekend wasn't enough, I then went to a class last night, hosted by the lovely Lisa, and then me, Brandi & Ang went out for some munchies. Bonus, I was home in bed by just about 10:30, my normal bedtime for working the early shift. The only down-side... missing out on getting together with my Bachelor girls :( . Hope to see you all very soon!

Update on the housework: I believe my cleaning fairy is on hiatus. That's very sad.

Happy Weekend

Finally Friday has arrived, and the weekend is around the corner. I have a busy weekend ahead. Tomorrow is National Scrapbooking Day, and I'm going to a crop at Buy-Rite; it's a 2 day thing to mark the occasion, so we'll crop from 1pm-10pm tomorrow, and 9am-5pm on Sunday! I'm trying to come up with some ideas so I can gather my stuff from home to complete the pages rather than spending money at the store. Let's face it though - where it's National Scrapbook Day, the odds are in the favor of some special bargains and deals...will Amber be able to control herself?.... All this scrapping will leave very little time to clean house this weekend.... I hope the cleaning fairy still reads my blog and will take pity on me... ***PLEASE*** cleaning fairy, please!

Greys...yeah...so last night I was really pumped for the 2hr episode...I must admit, I was a little disappointed. May sweeps coming though, so the next few weeks are sure to please, methinks. And did anyone catch American Idol this week? Jon Bon Jovi. YUM.

Titles

The more I think of my blog title, the more I picture someone sitting by themselves, rocking back & forth, mumbling.

I'm wondering if I should come up with a new title, more witty, less psychotic? Hmmm....

Full Moons**

On a routine basis, there are days when things just feel 'different'. Routine activities feel more complex, communications with others are altered, and the strangest, most bizarre situations come up. The culprit? I believe it to be when the moon is at its brightest, and its fullest. If I had the option to book out all my scheduled days off and vacation days around the full moons, I would gladly do so. Usually you can feel the effects a few days before and a few days after, but the actual day of the full moon is the worst. Boomer happened to mention the full moon is this evening. I knew before he said it. Apparently, it's a proven fact (statistic-wise) that people get 'weirder' with the moon being full.

So far, I've talked to a few different people where their specific gender was unable to be determined by the sound of their voice. Others, you can just "tell". You know the type...you picture them sitting there, mouth gaping open, that look on their face...as if it's difficult just to breathe, much less think. They start the conversation with 'Um....ah...um...'; they're unsure what their name is when you ask (the question leading to more 'ums' and 'ah'). They don't know why they called in the first place. You see it in traffic, too...people cutting out on you, running lights, that sort of thing.

It's just not safe,...it's not safe to leave your house on the full moons. Proceed with caution, people, for the love of all that's holy.

**Disclaimer: this post was not intended to intentionally offend anyone.

WTF???

Dear Mother Nature,

Enough is enough. It's not funny anymore.