O Christmas Tree...

On Thursday I went out and got my very own Christmas tree for the first time - a nice tiny little tree for my apartment. It's about 4' tall and was just big enough to fit all the decorations I have accrued over the years. I never bothered to decorate before as I've been traveling for Christmas over the past few years.

I also convinced my mom that she should give me the old ceramic table-top tree that my grandma made years ago, so now I have two trees!!

Though I'm not exactly sure when I'll have time to enjoy them. I think there is some sort of Holiday function every day for the next week. Not that I'm complaining ;) Tomorrow is work-related party 4/4 (yeah, I know I have an awesome job) and then lots of stuff with friends and family. Luckily, I'm almost done with the Christmas shopping - I only have to get my sister-in-law's gift(s). I'm not sure exactly what to get, but at least I know where to shop. I did finish making my nephews' gifts for Christmas though, which turned out pretty well:

Weird Weird Weird

I got an email today saying that my cell phone bill was ready. (I don't get paper bills, how environmentally friendly of me.) The strange thing is that it was from my old cellphone service provider - a December 2009 bill for a phone I canceled in AUGUST 2005.

Yeah. Not sure what it's all about. I haven't heard from them in over 3 years at least! So I called. I almost didn't. I thought about leaving it for another day; telling myself I was too "busy" to do it tonight. But I called and I'm glad I did...

It turns out that they still owe me a bit of a refund. $27.45 to be exact. A nice little windfall, and the cheque's in the mail.

Some Exciting News...

I hope that certain people are going to live up to their promise to hold up a boom-box playing Chariots of Fire...

because I get to carry the Olympic Torch on January 19th!!!

I am so thrilled!! Plus, check out the outfit I'll get:

I didn't quite realize...

exactly how long it has been since I last posted... I would have sworn up and down that there would have at least been an obligatory "Yippee! I started my job & it's my birthday" post but apparently not...

So what HAVE I been up to the past 3 months that's keeping me so busy? The aforementioned job - the past few months have been super busy but it'll start to slow down after Remembrance Day (or so I keep telling myself); I moved into a new apartment which has come together quite nicely; spending time re-acquainting myself with Calgary; and general day-to-day goings on...

In future I will try not to be such a slacker...

Road Trip!!

I'm glad it's a long weekend - granted every weekend for the past few months could qualify as such in my world - but I've only got two more so I must make the most of them...

On Sunday, Chantal and I are heading out on a mini-road-trip, down to Montana for some cross-border shopping. (fingers crossed that the dollar will climb a bit more before the end of the day). Mainly I'm looking for a few things for my new apartment, and the perfect back-to-work outfit. We of course will have the necessary road-trip supplies (cookies and beef jerky), passports in hand, a camera, and an iPod ready with tunes (and hats - roadtrippin' hats). I'm excited.

As an unrelated aside, I pretty much don't care who wins SYTYCD this season. Since Janette and Ade were voted off, I'm kinda meh on the rest of them. Plus I'm not sure that bringing back the Emmy-nominated routines from last season was a good idea. It just made it ever so aparent how lackluster Season 5 has been.

Have an enjoyable weekend!!

The Un-Exodus is Complete.

It's official. All addresses, licenses, registrations, identifications, etc. etc. etc. have been notified and changed over. My Health Card arrived today - the last thing I needed to be a full-fledged Albertan again.

After nearly 5 years, I'm back baby!!

SYTYCD - How you disappoint me...

Let's be clear. It's not the dancing; not really - though I do think last year had way more personality. There have been fewer really memorable or specatcular routines this time around. (Last night's Wade Robson routine excepted)

It's the judges. I know they have favourites. That is bound to happen. But I don't think they have ever been SO blatantly obvious about who those favourites are. And it's getting obnoxious and annoying. Like last week, when Mia Michaels basically told Kayla and Kupono that they were not going home, before they ever danced for their lives. Kupono went on to dance the worst solo in the history of the show, which Nigel basically said, but they kept him anyways.

I can only guess that backlash over that decision led Nigel to "explain" this week that the judges know the bottom 3 in the morning of results day, and have pretty much made up their minds before the solos - and that the solos rarely change their minds, but they can. Frankly if a great solo can save a dancer, then a terrible one should clearly send them home, no matter how favoured they are (especially when they also state they are prepared to go home). Speaking of all the judge-love, I do not get their obsession with Kayla either.

As for tonight - I think Nigel really wanted to keep Phillip for the tour but couldn't justifiy keeping him in the competition as he doesn't do well in a variety of styles, so insteady they just made it a Top 12 tour instead.

All these shenanigans are making the show a bit less enjoyable for me. I am fully aware this is how it has been in the past, it's just way more heavy-handed and blatant now - I'd rather be subtly manipultaed and won over by spectacular, sensational routines than beaten over the head with it...